In The Arms of A Werewolf
by lenette
Summary: Remus Lupin spent most of his life ashamed of his condition. He never imagined he'd fall in love. Holly Williams takes a teaching job at Hogwarts,not realizing how much it would change her life. Thanks to Plot Bunny Whisperer & Amelia Bedelia for beta-ing
1. A New Job

As thirty-one year old Holly Williams walked up the stone steps of the entrance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, she was almost as nervous as she had been when she had entered this school for the very first time. That day, she'd been eleven years old, and was still in awe of everything about this new world she'd discovered. The idea of being a witch was both exciting and a little scary then. Her seven years here had been some of the most wonderful in her life. She'd made friends here, and they had helped her through the tragic loss of her parents at age twelve. The staff had been very helpful to her then as well, taking care of everything necessary to see to it she was well cared for. She had been placed under the guardianship of her best friend's parents, and though she had certainly felt the loss of her family, she healed as well as possible and grew up to be a normal person, and a gifted witch.

After she'd finished school, she'd spent the better part of fourteen years as an Auror working for the Ministry of Magic. This was a job she'd enjoyed and found fulfilling until recently. Now, however, with the Minister in such denial over even the possibility that Voldemort could return, he was restricting what the Aurors were allowed to do, and this left her frustrated. She wanted to see dark wizards punished and society protected, but if she couldn't do that, then she felt she would be happier in another job. A few weeks ago, she had decided she'd had enough and was ready to move on, and she heard from a couple of reliable sources that Professor Dumbledore was looking for a new Muggle Studies teacher. She would have preferred to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, but that position was not available.

Today, though, she wasn't a short, bespectacled little girl with her red hair in a braid . . . she was tall and slender, her hair was long and loose, and she didn't wear glasses anymore. She was returning to the castle for the first time since she'd completed her education at age seventeen. Though she was nervous, it was because she wasn't sure if she was really qualified for the job. She had made above average grades in that subject as a student, and she had plenty of experience dealing with muggles; she was muggle born, and so was her friend whose parents she'd lived with. She felt she could do a good job with the class, but she wasn't sure if Dumbledore would agree. He'd always been kind to her while she was at school, but wasn't sure if he'd remember her now, and she knew she wouldn't want him to give her the job just as a favor. If she wasn't right for it, she wanted him to tell her.

She made her way through the castle to the Headmaster's office, and gave the gargoyle the password she'd been given in the letter she'd received from Dumbledore scheduling the interview. The gargoyle leapt aside, revealing its spiral staircase. She stepped on, and rode it up to the large door which opened into the office. She knocked, was told to enter, and opened the door. She did not immediately see Dumbledore, and looked around the office. It was as she remembered it; apparently he still had the same interest in unusual inventions that he'd had when she was here last.

After a moment, he came down the stairs, crossed the room to where she was, and shook her hand. He said "How have you been? It's been a long time since I saw you last."

"I'm fine. I've been working as an Auror since I graduated, and I loved it, until recently . . . " Her voice trailed off, she didn't want to criticize the Minister too much, yet she wanted Dumbledore to know she didn't like the way things were being handled these days.

"I think I know what you mean. Cornelius seems to have his head in the sand again. He just doesn't want to admit the truth that Voldemort is again at large and gaining power. I'm guessing he's been giving the Aurors a lot of trouble and restricting what you can do?"

"Yes sir. I don't want to go into great detail, because it angers me every time I think about it, but suffice it to say that he requires much more to suspect a person these days, and far more to arrest them than he has since I've been there. I feel I'm wasting my time . . . people that should be arrested are getting away because we can't prove what they're doing. So, I decided it was time to leave . . . I'd rather do something where I feel I'm accomplishing something than wait for someone to walk up to me and introduce themselves as a Death Eater to arrest them."

"So you'd like to apply for the job of Muggle Studies teacher here at Hogwarts? I wouldn't have guessed that subject would interest you."

"Well, sir, it does, particularly now that I'm older. As a student, it was not my favorite subject, I'll admit. But now, the idea of being able to help influence how young witches and wizards perceive muggles seems to be an interesting challenge. I think my experiences will give me some insights that even the books might not have."

Dumbledore thought for a minute, then said "You're right, it will give you some unique insights. I like your attitude, and I agree that educating our youth is of great importance. You've got the job. Not just because of your attitude, but because you are really qualified for it. You scored high enough on your OWLs and your NEWTs to become a teacher . . . you could have done it years ago."

She said "Thank you sir. So, what do I need to do next?"

He told her that unless she wanted to change the textbook, they could use the one that was already in use, and explained that he'd like her to send him a rough outline of what she intended to present in the course, along with a sample lesson plan. They still had most of the summer left, as it was only late June, so she didn't have to rush, but he did want to have it by mid August, so he'd have time to look at it. He also told her to be at the castle on August thirtieth, so she'd have a couple of days to settle into her quarters and get her classroom set up like she wanted. Since he had a meeting to attend shortly, he said he'd show her the living quarters when she came back in August. She thanked him for his time, and he shook her hand again, then she left.

Holly smiled and let out a small sigh of relief. If he had not hired her, she would have needed to look elsewhere for a job, and she couldn't really think of anything else she wanted to do.

As she rode in the carriage back to Hogsmeade, Holly thought about how thrilled she was over getting the job; this was something she could do that would be interesting for both her and her students if she planned it right. She was glad to have almost two months to prepare the information Dumbledore had requested. Since she had already resigned her position at the Ministry, she would have nothing else to take her away from her planning. Dumbledore had given her a copy of the textbook the previous teacher had been using, and she'd thumbed through it in his office before agreeing to use it for her class. It was the same book she'd read as a student there, but it had been updated over the years. However, she knew she would need to read it completely to be able to make lesson plans from it.

Thankfully, she knew she would not have to worry about money during this time either, as she had put aside a fair amount of savings over the years. Her parents had left her a comfortable inheritance as well, and she had been very careful with how she had spent it. About ten years ago, she had used some to buy her home outside of Godric's Hollow, but that had been the last time she'd used any money from that fund. She was very careful with it because it provided her with security for times like this.

Around this time, her carriage rolled to a stop, shaking her from her thoughts and back to the present. The carriage had stopped just outside the gates of the school, and she decided that since she had gotten the job, a bit of shopping to celebrate would be fun. So, she went first into Scrivenshaft's quill and stationery shop, and picked up some new quills, ink, and a planner book. Then, she walked down the street to Gladrags and chose a new winter cloak, some gloves and a new hat. Finally, she stopped at Honeydukes for a treat before she apparated back home for the evening.

When she arrived at home, she went inside and put the packages down, unloaded the bags and then decided to go for a stroll in her small garden. Her house was of a modest size, large enough to be comfortable, but not so big as to feel intimidating. It sat on about an acre of land, and she had turned a patch of it into a garden of flowers and vegetables. The area was a mostly rural one, on the edge of town, and that was one of the reasons she liked it.

As she walked through the garden, she plucked a few flowers to set on her table, and gathered a few vegetables that were ripe for her dinner. Being back at the castle today had left her feeling nostalgic. She had really loved that place, and knew her life had changed in many ways because of it. Hogwarts were where she had met Alyssa, her best friend, and the girl who had become her unofficial sister. Her family had taken Holly in when her parents home had burned, and they had raised her as if she were there own flesh and blood. She could not complain about any aspect of her life with them when she was a teenager . . . but since she had come of age was another story. She and Alyssa had enjoyed the arrangement and remained close to this day. They didn't see each other as often as they'd like because their lives were quite different.

Alyssa had become a Healer after graduation, and had soon fallen in love with a young man with whom she worked. The couple had married about two years later, and now had a son who was about six years old. Holly had stayed at their parents' home a few more years while she established herself in her career, but once she was twenty-one, she felt it was time to be more independent. She had dated a couple of guys seriously, but none seriously enough to marry; too many of them seemed to guess that she might have money and were more interested in her bank account than her, which always ended the relationship. She wanted a man to love her for herself, not what she had. So, lately, she had been content to be single and just enjoy her friendships. She felt love would come when it was time . . . whenever that may be.

Just then, a bird screeched rather loudly overhead, and she looked up, realizing it was nearly dark she needed to get inside and get her dinner started .

After dinner that night, Holly curled up on the sofa with the textbook for her class. She spent most of the next five weeks reading and making notes from the book. She found that this made it easier to prepare the syllabus and lesson plans that Dumbledore had requested. As she worked on this, she discovered it was easier to prepare a week's worth of plans at a time. At this point, she sent her work to Dumbledore. She worked for several more days, preparing about a month's worth of plans, but there she decided to stop. She didn't want to get too far ahead and end up having to redo a bunch of paperwork.

Aside from preparing for school, summer break was mostly uneventful. She did visit her adoptive parents, Jane and David to let them know she had gotten a new job and where they could reach her. Since they had raised two witches, they understood owl post and had an owl that the girls had bought for them a few years ago. Holly also visited Alyssa, her husband Steven, and their son, Mark, to share her good news with them.

On August thirtieth, Holly got the trunk she had packed, locked up her house, and apparated to Hogsmeade. Once there, she took a carriage to the castle, and was met in the entryway by Professor Dumbledore. He greeted her, shook her hand, and led her to her quarters. The rooms she had been assigned were on the sixth floor of Gryffindor tower. As they walked, they chatted, and he made sure she knew where everything was, and reminded her of the rules. He told her that her trunk would be brought up shortly, then invited her to join the rest of the staff for tea. As he left, he told her "Today and tomorrow are yours to do with as you wish, but make sure that your classroom is ready for classes on September first."

Although the next couple of days were busy, she didn't have as much to do as some of the staff did. Her classroom was not in great need of attention, except for putting a few of her own touches on it. So she was able to spend a bit more time getting her quarters set up. It was easy to tell this particular set of rooms had not been used in a while. The house elves had kept them clean, but they still had an unused feel to them. She had not brought along much in the way of personal effects. Some of her favorite books and pictures were the only things she'd packed apart from her clothes and teaching supplies. But, even those few things made the place feel a bit more like home.

The sorting ceremony was fun to watch as an adult. She remembered her own sorting as if it were yesterday. She had been so nervous she couldn't even describe it. However, it was made easier by the fact that she had met Alyssa that day.

After the ceremony, there were the usual announcements and feast, which of course was quite delicious. Once the students were led out, the teachers were dismissed as well, and she went upstairs to bed.

The first day was, as she'd expected, exciting. That day she had two groups each of third and fourth years, for a total of four ninety minute classes. The third year classes were back to back, then she had a break, then the two classes of fourth years in a row. She was amused at some of the things the third years thought about muggles, particularly about the way they lived. Some of them had heard a little about electricity, but didn't understand what it really was. They were puzzled by things like telephones, radios, cars, and just about any appliance or electronic device.

Sadly, even in the youngest group, she encountered a few students that had already been taught to dislike muggles. They didn't say this, but she could tell how they felt by what they did say.

Her fourth years had a better grasp of some of the basic concepts of muggle daily life, but there was still a decent amount to cover. There was a lot more to the subject of Muggle Studies than might at first be obvious. Luckily, her predecessor had been a good teacher, so the older students had a good foundation of knowledge upon which she could build.

That night, after dinner, she spent some time looking over what she'd planned for Thursday, when she'd have these same groups again. She made a few corrections to adjust for each group's individual needs. Once she finished, she went to bed.

The next day she had an equally busy schedule; two classes of fifth years, a break, then two groups of sixth and seventh years combined. The higher level classes were smaller, since they were made up of students wishing to pursue certain careers that required more knowledge of muggles. The small class size allowed her to spend one on one time with the students as needed, which she felt would benefit the students. As with the previous day, all her classes were ninety minutes long. These older groups had a better knowledge of the basic concepts of muggle life, and were learning about aspects of their lives outside the home. They dealt somewhat with muggle psychology just to give a basic understanding of muggle behavior, muggle culture, and how to interact with muggles and still stay within wizard laws regarding secrecy.

Wednesday, she had a break from classes, which allowed her to get her papers graded and review her lesson plans. It also afforded her a break so that she could relax from her busy week.

By the end of the week, she was tired, but really feeling good about her job. She'd be the first to admit it would be a lot of work, and each of her classes would present its own unique challenges, but she felt that she could handle whatever might come up. She was enjoying herself, though, and felt her students were as well.


	2. Christmas Butterflies

Soon she fell into the routine of school, and this made the time pass quickly. Before she was really aware of how much time had passed, it was already Christmas break. Since she had never spent a Christmas at Hogwarts, she decided she would stay, as did much of the staff and a handful of students. A couple of students that she had been tutoring were also staying and had asked her to continue their lessons. She agreed, and they spent a couple of hours each day studying. However, she did take Christmas Eve off to visit her family, and to visit her parents' graves. She saw Alyssa at their family dinner, and there was no one else she wanted to visit.

On Christmas Eve night, when she returned to the castle, Professor Dumbledore was just coming out of the Great Hall and called her up to his office. He told her "I have been meaning to talk to you for a while, but we have both been rather busy. I seem to recall you expressing some frustration about the attitude of the Ministry in regards to Voldemort. You said you wanted to see dark wizards punished, but your hands were tied. How would you like to be part of a group that shares your views and is trying to fight against Voldemort?" Holly thought about this for a minute and said "This sounds interesting. What would be involved? Tell me more."

"The group is called the Order of the Phoenix. It is a secret society of wizards and witches from many places and backgrounds. We already have a few ex-Aurors, along with a few people placed within the Ministry, and several of the staff at Hogwarts belong as well. As for what specifically you'd be doing, it would depend on what was needed at the moment. We may call on you to guard something or someone, to gather information, or to follow someone. The biggest question, however, is, do you want to see Voldemort defeated badly enough to risk your life for it?"

Holly thought about it for a moment, realizing that this offer, this group, was a chance to put some of the skills she'd learned as an Auror to use again. It would also mean working against the Ministry, but in a way that would protect society and hopefully raise awareness of the reality of Voldemort's return. She told Dumbledore "Yes. I'll join. I have spent fourteen years of my life bringing dark wizards to justice. The idea of risking or losing my life in the fight against Voldemort is nothing new to me; leaving the Ministry has not changed my desire to see justice served and society protected. I will do anything I can do to help."

Dumbledore smiled at her "Wonderful. I was hoping that would be your answer. There's a meeting in a couple of hours. Why don't you come and meet everyone and we'll see if there's anything you can do for us now?" She agreed to meet him and Professor McGonagall in the entrance hall in two hours.

At 8:00 p.m., she met the two professors in the entrance hall. The three of them walked outside and down the driveway to the gates of the school, enjoying the cool evening air. Once at the gates, Dumbledore instructed Holly to take his arm so they could apparate together to the meeting place.

They landed behind some bushes across the street from what looked like a muggle apartment complex. They step out of the bushes, and Dumbledore tells her "This place has a number of protective charms on it. One of them is the Fidelius charm, which keeps anyone from finding won't be able to see the apartment we're going into until I show you the address." He then holds up a slip of paper with #12 Grimmauld Place written on it. When Holly shifted her gaze, she could see a new apartment had appeared in between numbers eleven and thirteen.

They walked across the street and Dumbledore knocked on the door to number twelve. They were admitted by a tall dark skinned wizard in deep purple robes. "Professor Dumbledore, good to see you. I see you've brought a guest tonight. Is this our newest member?" "Hello Kingsley. This is Holly Williams, the new Muggle Studies teacher I had mentioned to you a few weeks ago. Yes, she is our newest member. She just joined a couple of hours ago."

At this, he extended his hand to Holly, and said "Nice to meet you. I am glad to hear you have joined us. From what Professor Dumbledore has said, you will certainly be an asset to our group."

By this time, they were at the kitchen door, and Holly scanned the room. She was pleasantly surprised to see two familiar faces apart from the Hogwarts staff members who were there.

Professor Dumbledore addressed the group "Good evening everyone. I have brought our newest member to our meeting tonight. She just joined us a couple of hours ago. This is Holly Williams.

For those of you who do not know, Holly is an ex-Auror. She resigned her position a few weeks after school ended in June. She left the Ministry after fourteen years because she felt her hands were tied. I know Holly well, she's a hard worker, bright, dedicated, loyal and very organized. She also had some of the highest grades in Defense against the Dark Arts in her class, for all seven years, and she was considered one of the best Aurors the Ministry had. I'm sure we can put her talents to good use."

He then introduced the group as they were gathered around the table " This is Hestia Jones, Mundungus Fletcher, and Alastor Moody; of course you recognize Professors Snape and McGonagall; next to her is Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin. These are not nearly all of our members . . . several other teachers stayed behind at school, the Weasleys are not here either, and a good many more are either working or with their families." As they had been introduced, each witch or wizard had given Holly a smile or a nod. Sirius Black and Remus Lupin she had recognized immediately, as they had been in school at the same time. The two men had been fifth year students during her first year at Hogwarts. In fact, Remus Lupin had been the object of many teenage daydreams for the three years that their education had overlapped. There had just been something about that warm smile and those bright blue eyes that she adored. As all of this quickly drifted through her mind, she felt her cheeks flush, and knew she was probably blushing like a schoolgirl. She shook the feeling off and spoke " Hello everyone, I'm pleased to meet you. Thank you, Professor Dumbledore, for the compliments. I am hoping to put my skills to good use for this group. I look forward to working with all of you."

Then Dumbledore asked questions of various other members about things they'd been doing that, at this point, she didn't have enough information to understand. After a few minutes more, everyone left except Dumbledore, McGonagall, Sirius, Remus, and Holly. Dumbledore was just asking how Mr. Weasley was doing after having been bitten by the snake when there was a sharp knock at the door. Sirius went to open it, and there was the Weasley family. Holly knew the boys and Ginny from school. Their mother needed no introduction; it was obvious she was their mom from the way she was interacting with them. Their friends Hermione Granger and Harry Potter were with them as well. As they made their way into the kitchen, Dumbledore addressed Mrs. Weasley "Hello Molly. How is Arthur?" She replied that everything seemed to be going well and he would likely be out of the hospital in a few days. Dumbledore then briefly introduced Holly. Mrs. Weasley shook her hand, smiling, and welcomed her "I've heard a bit about you, of course, from the children. They all agree that you make Muggle Studies much more interesting than their previous teacher." Holly blushed "Thanks. It's good to know they enjoy the class. I hope most of my students feel that way."

Mrs. Weasley then invited everyone that was there to stay for tea or cocoa. Holly and Dumbledore accepted, but McGonagall decided to return to school. Holly stood up, stretched, and offered to help Mrs. Weasley. But Molly declined " No, you're a guest, and this will only take a minute." So, Holly sat back down in front of Remus, who then said "You seem very familiar. I know you went to Hogwarts, obviously, and you graduated fourteen years ago. So, we were in school together for a little while. What house were you in? Have we met before?"

"Yes, we've met. I was in Gryffindor, a first year during your fifth year. We ran into each other several times. You probably remember me because in my second year, my parents were killed in a house fire, and I was then placed with my friend's family. Several nights I was out after curfew and you escorted me to Professor McGonagall or Dumbledore, so that the other prefects wouldn't take points off. I always appreciated that."

"Oh yes, I do remember you. It was no problem to do that small favor; I felt that after all you'd been through you deserved a break. I always hoped everything turned out okay for you. Rumor was that you had no surviving family. But I also remember hearing about your Defense Against the Dark Arts grades; some of your classmates were impressed with how quickly you caught on to everything."

"Rumor was correct about my family, I have no living relatives. But the family that took me in was very good to me. They helped me heal without sitting around feeling sorry for myself. The same was true of the Hogwarts teachers- they gave me enough slack to help me, but not enough to let me give up. That's what the late night visits were for, when I needed to talk to someone. As for my grades, Defense Against the Dark Arts was my favorite subject. I took to it easily, and put in quite a few extra hours each week studying."

Holly and Remus continued to reminisce like this for an hour, sharing things they had each noticed or heard about the other during their school years. Then, Dumbledore took advantage of a pause in the conversation to ask if Holly wanted to return to school with him, or come on her own later. It was after 11:00 p.m. and he was ready to return to the castle. She hesitated a moment, and Remus said "If you want to stay but not go back alone, I'll go with you whenever you're ready."

So she accepted his offer, and Dumbledore left.

Holly then said "I won't be imposing on anyone by staying, will I? I don't even know whose house this is . . . Dumbledore just called it 'headquarters'."

Remus replied "The house belongs to Sirius, but I live here too. For the moment, I don't have a home, and Sirius has been kind enough to give me a room here. The Weasleys are staying here as well, but they're all in bed except Molly, and she won't mind. We're all accustomed to people coming and going during the night. Sometimes the work we're doing for the Order requires odd hours."

"Good, I'm glad to know I won't be bothering anyone. So tell me more about yourself, Remus. I know you were friends with Sirius, James Potter, and Peter Pettigrew . . . I remember watching you all together. I know you were a prefect, and that you are a werewolf. But there's more to you than this."

Remus was visibly startled " I won't deny being a werewolf, but how did you know? Surely you wouldn't believe a rumor among the students, and I know Dumbledore wouldn't tell you."

" I figured it out while we were at school together. First of all, I had a huge crush on you, so I paid attention to everything you did, and noticed you being gone every month. Also, I had a window by my bed, and some nights when I couldn't sleep, I'd look out over the grounds. A couple of times I saw activity by the Whomping Willow and sometimes I'd see a deer, a dog, and what at the time looked like either another large dog or a wolf running across the grounds. I did some reading which allowed me to recognize the 'large dog' as a werewolf, and I thought about the fact that this always happened at the full moon. It all just fit."

Remus laughed. " We were trying to be so careful, so no one would know. I was always dressed in something that we hoped would hide my appearance . . . and of course at a distance, you couldn't have seen my face. So, how were you sure it was me and not some other student? And how did you know the others' animagus forms?"

" I knew it was you because you were consistently absent every full moon. Though sometimes other students were absent as well, it was the consistency that gave it away. As for the others' animal forms, it took me a while to figure that out, but Sirius' bark-like laugh helped. I was a shy kid and sought out the same types of quiet places you did, and sometimes would pass by you in my pursuit of peace and quiet. Sometimes, I'd pass close to you in the hall or the common room and catch a bit of a conversation that would match up to something I'd seen. Also, I would sometimes hear you call each other by nicknames. It just seemed to all make sense to me."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised at your figuring it out . . . not with the grades you made. I bet you were one of those students that had perfect scores in everything."

Holly chuckled " I wish. I had good grades in some classes, but I was really terrible in others. History of Magic, Divination, Arithmancy, and Ancient Runes were subjects I barely passed. I also did well in Charms, Potions, Transfiguration, and Care of Magical Creatures. Those subjects were the most interesting to me, and I guess I just didn't apply as much effort to the others."

"I've got to know, though, why you never said anything to anyone about my condition. I appreciate the fact that you didn't"

"I didn't see any reason to say anything. The staff obviously knew, and was taking precautions to protect everyone, and I felt that was good enough. To me, there was no reason to panic the students and make your life miserable. Your condition is not your fault, and since I liked you, I didn't want to see you expelled; I wouldn't have been able to see you if that had happened."

Remus grinned, whether at the fact that Holly's teenage crush on him had caused her to pay so much attention to his activities, or because she'd figured out what he was and didn't say anything, she didn't know. He then said "I'm glad you saw things that way, it did save me some misery. There was one other person who figured it out and went to Dumbledore with it; thankfully Dumbledore convinced him to remain silent while we were in school together."

About this time, Holly looked up at the clock and realized it was almost midnight, she needed to leave. " I hate to bring this up, because I am really enjoying your company, but I do need to get back to the castle."

Remus stood up, stretched a bit, and said " Wait here, I'm going to go let Sirius know I'm leaving." He left the kitchen and went upstairs, then was back in a couple of minutes.

They walked outside, crossed the street and were then behind the bushes and trees she and Dumbledore had landed near earlier. They chose this spot because it was out of sight of the muggles. Remus offered his arm " I know you can apparate on your own, but if you want to make sure we land close together, you can take my arm."

Holly agreed "Sounds good to me." When she took his arm, and placed her hand in his, a little shiver ran up her spine that had nothing to do with the cold night air. For a brief second, she wondered why, but then forced herself to concentrate on what she was doing. They landed on the street in Hogsmeade, a few yards from the gates of the school. Then, Remus offered to walk her all the way to the castle doors. " In case there are any surprises out there in the dark where two wands might be better than one." Holly said that made sense to her, so they set off, walking at a leisurely pace. As they walked, they talked about the current situation at the school, and the disagreements they had with the Ministry. They both felt the Minister had the wrong attitude about a lot of things, and that Umbridge was the worst thing to happen to the school in a long time. They both would love to figure out a way to get rid of her, but knew there was really nothing either of them could do right now. Holly realized that she had to be very careful to not give Umbridge any reason to dislike her, other than the one she couldn't help . . . her muggleborn background. Remus agreed, and said that he didn't think she would dismiss Holly for that alone, but it would cause her to scrutinize everything Holly did much more closely.

They arrived at the doors and Holly told him again that she'd enjoyed his company and that she hoped there was another Order meeting soon so she could visit with him afterwards.

He replied " You don't have to wait for an Order meeting to visit me. Why don't you come over for Christmas dinner tomorrow evening? No one will expect a gift or anything; we'll just eat and enjoy visiting. You can meet the rest of the Weasley family too."

"Sure, that sounds good."

"Dinner is at 6:00 p.m.; oh, and it's not a formal event either, just wear whatever's comfortable. And in case you were wondering, now that you know the address, you can get there on your own now that you know the address."

"Great, that will make it easier. Thanks for the invitation, and for coming here with me. Even though I'm an ex-Auror, given the things that have been going on lately, I didn't feel it would be a good idea to be out alone at night."

"I guessed as much, that's why I offered. And you're very welcome for both. I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow."

"Same here. Well I need to get inside. Goodnight, Remus"

"Goodnight Holly"

As she walked inside and made her way upstairs to her quarters, Holly couldn't quite get Remus out of her head. And that little shiver as their hands had touched . . . where did that come from? She thought maybe it was all the talking they'd done about their time at Hogwarts, a time when she'd have given almost anything to hold his hand. At that age, she probably would not have been able to have as long a conversation with him as she'd done tonight. Those late night walks from Gryffindor dormitories to McGonagall's and Dumbledore's offices had been mostly quiet, with just a few generic questions about why she was out of bed, or about school in general. She'd wished more times than she could count during those first three years at school that she were a little older and not so painfully shy. Then maybe she'd have worked up the nerve to at least talk to him. But, she was shy then- so shy in fact that she'd never really had but one close friend. She'd talked to other girls in her year, and they had studied together, even spent time together outside of classes, but she always felt a little unsure of herself around them. As for her crush on Remus, she'd thought time had taken care of it . . . he had graduated in her third year, and she had barely thought of him since then. The only times he'd really crossed her mind was when Lily and James got married, and again when they were murdered.

She couldn't deny the fact that she did still find him attractive; age had not harmed his looks, even the scars didn't bother her. However, she was mature enough to know that one evening's conversation and a little physical attraction were not cause to get too excited or get her hopes up. At that thought, she reached the door to her quarters, went inside, changed into a warm gown and went to bed.

The next morning she slept a bit late, finally getting out of bed around 9:30 a.m. She had the kitchen send up a light breakfast, ate, then got dressed. She decided that jeans, a warm sapphire blue sweater, and boots would be comfortable for the day. She realized as she was getting dressed that tonight was the staff Christmas dinner. Dumbledore had said it was optional, but she still felt she should let him know she wouldn't be there.

She went to his office, and he greeted her warmly. " Good morning Holly. What brings you here this morning?"

"I wanted to let you know I won't be attending the staff dinner this evening. Remus invited me to join him for dinner at headquarters, and I accepted."

"That's fine. I'm sure you'll enjoy the evening. Molly Weasley is a fantastic cook."

"I'm looking forward to it. In the meantime, though, I have some research I need to do to present to my classes. So, I'm going to use the time today to work on it."

"It's the holidays, you may use your free time as you wish. I will see you later."

Holly then left his office and headed for the library. She was looking for some materials to supplement the textbook for certain things that she would be presenting right after classes resumed. She found what she needed, checked out the books, and went upstairs to her quarters. Once there, she spread everything out and buried herself in her work. She spent the next four hours making notes and diagrams. When she looked at the clock over the fireplace, it was 5:00 p.m. She had about half an hour to get ready for dinner at Grimmauld Place. She marked her place, closed the book she'd been taking notes from, got up and walked into the bedroom. She looked at her reflection in the full length mirror hanging on the closet door, trying to decide if she wanted to change outfits. She decided to stay in what she was wearing, but opted to let her long red hair out of its ponytail, and just pull the sides back with barrettes. She then got her heavy cloak from the hook it was on, along with her scarf and gloves. She put it all on, and made her way downstairs and outside. The late afternoon air was cold, making her walk much more quickly than she had last night when she arrived.

As soon as she got outside the gate, she apparated to Grimmauld Place. She checked to see that no one was watching her, then crossed the street and knocked on the door. Remus opened it, and smiling at her, wished her a Merry Christmas, then took her cloak, gloves, and hat.

"You're a little early, but that's okay. We didn't get to introduce you to all of the Weasleys last night, so you can meet them now."

They walked into the kitchen, and Remus said "I'm sure you know George, Fred, Ginny , Ron and of course Harry and Hermione from classes; beside Ron is their oldest brother Bill, then Charlie. At the end of the table is their father, Arthur."

He then addressed them "For those of you who weren't here last night, this is Holly, the new Order member I told you about."

Holly then said hello, and that she was glad to meet them. She sat down between Remus and Hermione. She turned to Remus and said "Thanks for inviting me over today. The food smells delicious."

Remus grins playfully " Yes it does. Molly is a wonderful cook, but I think she enjoys making us wait as long as possible to eat. It can be almost a form of torture."

About this time, Mrs. Weasley asked Ginny and Hermione to help her set the table. Of course, having a large bowl of fluffy mashed potatoes placed across the table from her only made Holly much more aware of the aroma of the food. As soon as all the dishes were set out, everyone started filling their plates. Holly took a little bit of just about everything, wanting to sample it all, but still be able to eat dessert.

When the dinner had been finished and the plates cleared from the table, she and Remus started talking. "That was a wonderful meal. It reminded me of how my real mom cooked when I was young. Jane could cook well, but not like mom. Mom was the type of person that liked to cook, especially for her family, and everything she prepared came out delicious. This was the first meal I've had since I was a little girl that not only tasted incredible, but made me feel good."

"I know what you mean; that's one of the reasons I love to eat here if Molly's cooking."

"Now that we're both stuffed, how about you finish the conversation we were having last night? I had asked you to tell me more about yourself, and we only got as far as the werewolf part."

"There's really not a lot more to tell. I was bitten as a small child, and my parents searched everywhere for anything that even might help. Trying to manage my condition became the main focus of our lives. We didn't think I would be able to attend school, but Dumbledore came up with the plan I told you about, and I was admitted. I was thrilled when I was told I could go to Hogwarts. I finally had real friends there, which I truly enjoyed. Those years were the best of my life because even though they figured out what was wrong with me, they didn't run from it. It didn't matter to them, they liked me for who I was. After school, I worked where and when I could, but very few people will hire a werewolf, and it's something you can't hide from them...so it made it difficult. Two years ago, I taught Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts for most of the year. Then one night, I failed to take my potion, and transformed in front of Professor Snape. Luckily I didn't hurt anyone, but he seized the opportunity the situation presented and told the students I am a werewolf. So, I resigned rather than cause more trouble for Dumbledore. Since then, I've been doing what I can to help the Order."

At that, Mrs. Weasley asked if everyone was ready for dessert, and most of us were, so she brought out an assortment of cakes, pies, cookies and candies. It all looked and smelled as delicious as the meal had been. While they were eating, Remus told her "Alright, you've heard my story, now it's your turn."

"Okay. I'm 31, a muggleborn, I went to Hogwarts from 1975 to 1982. I'm an only child, my parents were killed when our house burned shortly after I started my second year . After the fire, I was placed under the guardianship of my friend's parents. The arrangement worked out well- Alyssa and I grew up like sisters. I enjoyed my time at Hogwarts. I was shy, especially until about my fifth year. I did make a few friends, and I dated a little. Defense Against the Dark Arts was my best subject, and that was one reason why I became an Auror. The attack on the Potter family was another. I was a sixth year then, and had already decided that was what I wanted to do. But knowing what Voldemort was capable of ...that he would go after a family, and especially a child, just confirmed for me that I wanted to go into the Ministry as an Auror. I graduated, took the summer off to relax, and then went into training. I was considered one of the best Aurors the Ministry had for several years...not as good as Mad-Eye Moody, but still a good Auror. But recently, the Minister has the attitude that Voldemort can't possibly be back, and as a result, he's wanting more proof that a person is a death eater, making it nearly impossible in some cases to arrest them. I got frustrated at this, because there have been several people that I was nearly completely certain should be in Azkaban that are still walking free because Aurors are not allowed to go after them. So, I left. The rest you know."

When everyone had finished eating, the dessert dishes were cleared, and the Christmas gifts were brought out. Remus and Holly moved down the table a little distance to allow the family more room to spread out, and a little privacy. They sat there, watching the Weasleys open their gifts and talking about what Christmas had been like for them as children. For both of them, the holidays had held a mixture of joy and sadness. This year, though, felt different for Holly. She had enjoyed her time with Alyssa and her parents, she always did; and she missed her real family, but she felt almost as if she were being adopted by the Order in general, but especially by the Weasleys and Remus. She had only known them a day and she already was feeling quite at ease with them. Precious few people in her life had made her feel this comfortable , this quickly.

After a few minutes, Mrs. Weasley turned on the radio and the room was filled with the sounds of holiday music. They all sang along, badly, but laughing and enjoying themselves anyway. About a dozen songs later, the announcer gave the time as midnight..Holly could hardly believe it was that late. She checked the clock on the wall, and it agreed. She hated to bring it up, but told them she needed to go. Remus offered to go back with her, she accepted, and he got her cloak, and scarf for her. Mrs. Weasley had put some candy in a tin and insisted she take it with her. Holly thanked her, put on her cloak, and said her goodbyes. She and Remus stepped outside and, as they had last night, apparated to Hogsmeade, then walked up to the castle. They talked more as they walked, and when they reached the steps, he invited her to come back tomorrow.

Holly accepted his invitation, then went inside the castle. As she walked to her quarters, she reflected on her evening. It was the best she'd had in a long time. The Weasley family, Sirius and Remus really made her feel welcome at Grimmauld Place. She was enjoying getting to know them, especially Remus. He struck her as being a very intelligent, caring person, with a bit of a mischievous streak.

The next morning, she awoke around 10 a.m. She still had some work to do for her classes, but she was going back to Grimmauld Place for dinner. She went about her day, spending most of it in her quarters reading and preparing lesson plans. Around 3:30 p.m, she finished up her notes, and then decided it would be nice to surprise them with some cookies. She spent the next hour making a big batch of oatmeal raisin cookies, then put them in tin to take with her. Once finished, she put on her cloak and left.

When she arrived at Grimmauld Place, Remus answered her knock on the door.

"Good afternoon"

"Good afternoon. I brought a little something to share with everyone. It's not much, just something I thought everyone would enjoy."

"What is it?"

"Oatmeal raisin cookies that I just finished baking."

"Sounds delicious."

They walked into the kitchen, and Holly gave the cookies to Mrs. Weasley, saying that she had just wanted to surprised them.

Holly really enjoyed herself that evening, as she had the previous two. She spent some time talking to everyone, but most of it was spent with Remus. She found herself just as drawn to him as when she was a teenager, but now she had the confidence to actually talk to him. They discussed a little of everything, and she discovered they had a lot in common.

As before, when Holly got ready to leave, Remus accompanied her . He walked all the way to the castle with her, so that she wasn't out after dark alone. At least, that's what he told her. It was mostly true, but he also enjoyed her company. That was the main reason they didn't bother with a carriage, walking gave them longer to talk.

Tonight when they said goodbye, he said he hoped to see her the next day. But she said she wasn't sure because she still had quite a bit of work to do before classes resumed. She told him she'd be there by 5:30 p.m if she could.

For the next four days, Holly stayed at the castle, finishing her paperwork for her classes.

On New Year's Eve, she bought a bottle of champagne, then went to Grimmauld Place to spend the evening. She arrived just before 5 p.m., had dinner with them, then relaxed and enjoyed the evening. They had the wireless on to listen to some holiday music. She and Remus talked for hours about how they'd spent different holidays and what they hoped the new year would bring.

As the clock struck midnight, Remus poured champagne for everyone who wanted it, and they toasted the new year. Then the radio played a good slow song. Everyone paired up with someone to dance. The twins danced with each other, to everyone's amusement. Remus offered Holly his hand, so she accepted and they danced. Holly liked the way it felt to be in his arms, even though he was not holding her really close. He moved quite well for someone who said he didn't dance much. When the song ended, she noticed several of the others were watching them. Remus spun her around, then they both bowed, as if the whole thing had been a performance for their benefit. For a fleeting second, Holly hoped Remus would kiss her, but the moment passed and he didn't.

After their dance, they talked a while longer. Around 1a.m., Holly decided she needed to go back to the castle. Remus walked her home, and along the way, he told her he wouldn't be able to see her again for quite a while; he was going "undercover" for the Order to do some information gathering among the other werewolves. The intention was to persuade them, if possible to join the Order; but if that couldn't be done, then to get as much information as he could. He didn't know when he'd be back, because it would take some time to gain their trust enough for him to find out anything. She told him to be careful, and that she would miss him. He promised to let her know when he got back, and to be as careful as he could.

This evening, as Remus was walking back up the castle driveway, he realized he couldn't get Holly out of his head. Her voice kept lingering there...telling him she'd miss him. It had been a long time since anyone had told him that. He mentally shook himself... "she's just a friend", he reminded himself. "Don't forget what you are, she may like you, but don't let yourself think it can be anything else." He apparated back home, still thinking of her, but with a mixture of sorrow and longing, instead of the happy curiosity he'd been feeling earlier.


	3. A Cold Spring

Classes resumed on January sixth, and as she'd expected, many of Holly's students were still a bit restless from the holidays. They clearly weren't ready to be back in class. So she decided to give them a little slack by spending a couple of days reviewing what they had covered just before the holidays. The following week, she began introducing new material. She also continued tutoring some of the students she had been working with during the holidays.

February was a busy month. Her fifth and seventh year students had their OWL and NEWT exams approaching. This meant doing everything she could to ensure they had the information they needed to study. As February drew to a close, she was inspected by Professor Umbridge.

On the twentieth, she went into her first class, hoping she was ready for the inspection, and that it would not be during her first class. This particular group was one of third years, and they could be a little challenging. She could handle them, but she'd rather not need to deal with any mischief or misbehavior in front of Umbridge.

Thankfully, Umbridge did not show up until her third class of the day. This was a section of fourth years that were well behaved and attentive. Hopefully that would help make a good impression. Just after the students were seated, Professor Umbridge came in.

"Good afternoon, Professor Williams. I trust you received the notice of your inspection today?"

"Yes ma'am, I did. "

Umbridge took an empty seat near the back of the class.

"This is your first year as a teacher, correct?"

"Yes ma'am."

"You worked for the Ministry until June? Why did you leave?"

"Yes, I was an Auror until June. The reason I left is that I decided I would enjoy a job with less pressure. This has fit that description quite nicely."

"I see. Please proceed with your lesson. I will make some notes and talk to some of the students."

Holly began her lecture. Today she was introducing electronic communication, starting with the telephone. She put up a diagram and began explaining how a phone worked.

A few minutes into her lecture, she saw Umbridge talking to one of her students. This particular boy didn't seem to particularly like the class. He wasn't disruptive, just indifferent. She looked away, trying not to get nervous about what he might be saying. Umbridge questioned a few more students that thankfully, should give a good cross section of the class. Some of them were excellent students, and some were average students. When she'd finished talking to them, Umbridge turned her attention back to Holly.

"So, you're a muggleborn, correct?"

"Yes ma'am."

"That gives you a special perspective for your class, I'm sure."

"It gives me a bit better understanding of muggles, yes."

"Do you ever wonder how you came to be a witch?"

"No, I was born this way. If you mean do I wonder if there was magic elsewhere in my family, I can't say it matters to me."

"So you're not concerned about the origins of your talents?"

"No ma'am. I am a witch and that's all I need to know."

"I see. Well I think I have what I need. You will receive the results of your inspection in three to five days. Have a good day."

She then returned to her lecture, and realized she wouldn't quite be able to get as far as she'd planned. She wasn't going to make things harder for the class by rushing the explanation just to give them homework. So she got as far as she comfortably could, assigned them some reading to go with what she'd covered and told them to expect an assignment next time.

As the class filed out, she went over the inspection in her mind. She had talked to Remus about the inspections over the holidays, even though she did not know when hers would be. He had made some suggestions about how to present her material accurately without appearing too muggle friendly. She felt she had done that, but was not pleased that Umbridge had questioned her about being muggleborn. It was not something she hid, everyone who knew her knew that she was. But she didn't appreciate the insinuation that it should matter to her or that she was foolish for not being curious about her bloodline. She shrugged it off, though, and went on with her day, telling herself there was nothing she could do about it anyway.

Four days later, she received the results of the inspection. She had passed, but she could tell by the comments on it that Umbridge would likely be watching her closely.

March came in like a lion...cold, windy and with several days of heavy rain. But half way through the month, a little ray of sunshine came her way one rainy day at breakfast. She received two letters, one from Alyssa, announcing that she was pregnant with her second child; the other was from "Moony", saying he was back and okay. Fortunately, she was sitting at the opposite end of the table from Professor Umbridge. She slipped the letters into her jacket pocket, and went back to her breakfast. She then went on with her day, trying to keep her expression neutral. Just before lunch, she had a free hour, so she went to her office, and had just begun to reread both letters when she heard a knock on the door. She tucked the letters into a drawer, and called for the person to enter. Dumbledore came in, and said "I hope I'm not disturbing you, but I needed to talk to you."

"No, I was just reading my mail, to make sure I didn't miss anything when I looked at it this morning."

Dumbledore then said " I know you got a letter from Remus today; I did as well. Since he is back, we've called a meeting for this evening. Because Professor Umbridge is watching everyone so closely, we will need to leave separately and return at different times as well. The meeting is for 7:00 p.m., but I don't want you to leave until 7:30...I'll fill you in on anything you miss. And you should be back here by 9:30. I know you've been enjoying visiting with Remus, but, you need to be very careful not to come in late, as this will draw more attention to your activities."

"I understand, and agree with you. Is there anything else I should know?"

"If you decide to write to Remus, or anyone, at Grimmauld Place, use a code name and be very careful what you put in the letter. Professor Umbridge has already intercepted several owls, and we don't want her to find out anything she can use against us. Also, she's watching all the fires, so you can't use the floo network either. If you'd like, you can arrange to receive your mail at the Hogsmeade Post Office...as long as you still get some of it here, she's not as likely to notice anything.

"One more thing, for the meeting tonight, walk out, but take a carriage from Hogsmeade back, and don't let Remus come with you. Not only would this arouse Professor Umbridge's curiosity, but he will not likely be physically up to it, and we don't want him to get sick."

"Okay. I will probably make the arrangements for my mail from him to come to Hogsmeade tomorrow, and I will tell him what you said if he offers to escort me home."

The rest of the day passed normally, and at 7:30 p.m. she left the castle. She got to the meeting and found that the seat beside Remus had been left open, so she took it. He was in the middle of giving his account of the last eight weeks. He had realized fairly early on that the werewolves were solidly behind Voldemort, who had promised them a large supply of prey. So he had spent his time gathering information, and had found out a few things, but because they could tell he had lived among normal wizards, they were very secretive.

As Holly listened and watched, she was saddened by the look on Remus' face. Not only was he visibly very tired, but he appeared to be emotionally hurt as well. She hoped to speak to him for a little while before going back to school.

Once he was finished, Dumbledore thanked him for all the work he'd done, and told him that the report was confirmation of some things he had expected. Dumbledore had guessed, correctly, that Voldemort was willing to promise anything to get people to follow him, with no regard to the consequences of those promises. It also confirmed that this group of werewolves were so bloodthirsty that the offer of almost unlimited prey was one they couldn't refuse. This information was useful to the Order because it helped them know how Voldemort was thinking and could guide them in what to do next.

At that point, they all began to discuss what should be done next. Many ideas were put forth, but it was decided to leave things as they were for now, and come back in a few days with any new suggestions. Then the meeting was dismissed, and Holly realized she still had about half an hour before she needed to go back to school. She spoke to Remus "I'm so glad you're back. Are you okay?"

"I'm glad to see you again too. I'm okay, but very tired. I couldn't get my Wolfsbane potion while I was with them, so I was a full werewolf on all three full moons. The transformation is very painful, and I either got into some fights or scratched myself, because I have several new cuts. I can't say I remember everything that happened those nights, but that is part of the transformation, as you know. Also, even when I was in human form, I had to live off just what I could find to eat, and that was not much, so I have lost some weight and felt very weak when I first arrived back. Thanks to Molly, I'm feeling better, but it will take several days for me to feel back to myself again."

" I'm sorry to hear you had such a difficult time. Hopefully you won't have to go through it again."

"That's true, but I do feel bad that I was able to get so little information. I wish I could have gotten a lot more, but they could tell I had been living with normal wizards, and they have such hatred of normal wizard society that they won't open up to anyone who associates with them."

"You did your best, though, and at least now we know where we stand."

"Yes, it is as Dumbledore said...Voldemort will promise anything to his supporters. The sad part is that he doesn't care who gets hurt in the process...he has no regard at all for human life. The hard part for me, though, was being reminded of how vicious werewolves can be. I have not associated much with them in my life, and had tried to hope that the characterizations of them you hear were wrong. Sadly, they are not. So many of them are totally selfish and very bloodthirsty, and they see it as being 'justice' of a sort to infect and injure as many as they can. It disgusts me to know I'm one of them."

"But you are not one of them, Remus. Yes, you change form once a month, but you are not like they are. You are a very kind, caring man. Even though I've only know you a short time, I can see that much."

"I appreciate that. Most people find out I'm a werewolf and run the other way, they have no interest in even trying to get to know me. The friends I have in the Order are the only exceptions I've encountered. None of them has ever had a problem with my condition, and I consider all of them friends...several of them are very important to me."

"That's one more reason I'm glad I joined...making friends with you."

"I'm certainly enjoying getting to know you as well. You've proven to be full of surprises, but that's what makes you interesting, and a good friend."

Holly blushed brightly. " Thanks." and glanced at the clock "I've got to be back at school in about 15 minutes, I need to go. Before you offer, Dumbledore thought it best that you not escort me home tonight, we don't want to draw too much of Professor Umbridge's attention. But I'll be okay, I'm going to take a carriage up to the school."

"I understand. Be careful, and I hope to see you again soon."

After she left, Sirius came into the kitchen , and talked with Remus.

"What was Holly talking to you about after the meeting?"

"She was worried about me, she seemed to realize that something was bothering me, and asked me about my mission. She was truly concerned about how it had affected me to be around other werewolves."

"She seems to be quite a perceptive, intelligent woman. I know Dumbledore has spoken very highly of her. You think she's attractive, too, don't you?"

Remus blushed "I do, but what of it; there's no way she'd want to be with me, not if she knew what she'd be getting into."

"You've got to be kidding me 'if she knew what she'd be getting into'...the woman's an ex-Auror, she's an expert in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Not to mention she had you pegged for a werewolf when she was about a third year. She **knows** what she'd be getting into. And I've got a feeling she wants to get into it."

"I know she's read about werewolves, and figured me out early on, but that's not the same as living with one. Nobody would do that willingly."

"I guarantee you she would. You do realize she's not coming over here to see anyone else. You're the one she spends hours talking with."

"That's true, but maybe she just looks at me as a friend. That's how I see her."

"Remus, it's me you're talking to. I know how you act when you like someone...we were teenagers together, you know. I notice the fact that you repeat to me most of what she says to you, I see how you watch her walk...you're definitely interested, even if you don't want to admit it yet."

"I repeat what you say to her too...it just proves that I enjoy her conversation. She's just a friend."

"Keep telling yourself that, and maybe you'll believe it. But you may ruin the best thing that's happened to you."

Holly arrived back at the castle doors at 9:30 p.m, exactly as planned. She goes up to her quarters and settles in for the night. She falls asleep thinking of Remus, relieved that he's okay, and hoping that her conversation with him had helped him feel at least a little better about his mission.

The next morning was uneventful, her routine and classes went as they usually did. If Professor Umbridge suspected anything, she did not say anything to Holly about it. Since that afternoon was a Friday, and she was free to leave school after her classes without any suspicion, she went to the Hogsmeade Post Office and made arrangements to receive her mail from Grimmauld Place there. She also decided that she would send some of her mail to him from there as well. She knew they wouldn't be able to write often, but they did stay in touch.

About a week after Remus got back, Dumbledore called another meeting to discuss what to do now. Since Voldemort had gotten to the werewolves, there was nothing further to be done about them. It was decided that, for now at least, to focus mainly on recruiting more wizards and witches. After the meeting, she'd had a few minutes to talk to Remus, but not long. She was able to see that he was doing better... his cuts and scratches had started to heal, and he didn't look so tired. Again she was able to return to the castle with no apparent notice from Professor Umbridge, and things continued as normal.

In early April, however, there was a drastic change at Hogwarts. Professor Umbridge had been questioning students about "illegal activities".She had found out from one source that a handful of them were involved in "Dumbledore's Army" a secret organization of which Harry Potter was supposed to be the leader. Harry admitted to having founded it, but Dumbledore claimed it was his organization, that he was responsible for their activities. She tried to have him arrested, but he resisted, and disappeared. Harry and the other students involved were given detentions, and Professor Umbridge was appointed new Headmistress by the Minister.

This new situation made the air in the castle much more tense. It made life difficult for all the teachers, everyone knew that if they offended her, they'd be fired. In fact, Umbridge did go after Hagrid very soon after assuming control. She fired him, and in the process his house was nearly burned. Professor McGonagall was badly hurt trying to defend him and was hospitalized for a while. This incident caused some of the staff to become quite angry, and they probably would have left if they had not felt obligated to the students.

The only bright spot in all this for Holly was being able to write to Remus a couple of times. She was able to let him know what was going on, and though he had no suggestions for her, it was nice to have someone to just listen. She wished she could see him, but knew that was too risky. She knew that Umbridge would not hesitate to use anything she might see as a grounds for dismissal.


	4. Battles

****Battles***

As April drew to a close, the Ministry examiners arrived to conduct the OWL and NEWT tests for fifth and seventh year students. This process would take a couple of weeks to go through and all the students in those years were quite nervous.

On one of the exam days, she heard a rumor that Harry Potter had fainted (or fell asleep, depending on who you believed) during a test, and was unable to complete the exam. A couple of hours later, Dumbledore and Snape came to her in her office and told her to accompany them into the forest. As they walked, she learned that Harry and five other students had been caught trying to use the fire in Professor Umbridge's office. She had assumed that he was trying to contact Dumbledore, but it had been Sirius he was looking for. He evidently thought Sirius was not at home, because he told Professor Snape, in code, that Sirius was at the Ministry. Snape had relayed the message to Dumbledore, who had returned to the school to get a better picture of what was going on. He had sent Moody, Kingsley, Lupin and Sirius ahead to the Ministry to deal with whatever might be happening there. Upon his arrival at the school, he had gone to Umbridge's office, and finding only the students who had been guarding Harry and his friends, had asked them what had happened. They told him that the other students were leading Professor Umbridge to a weapon of some kind.

From this, Dumbledore had guessed that they were probably leading her into the forest, which is why they were headed there now. As they walked through the forest they could hear noise...the centaurs seemed to be quite upset about something. Once they were within sight of the herd, they could see Umbridge on the ground, obviously injured, and looking like she was barely conscious. Dumbledore managed to reason with the centaurs and get them to leave her alone. Dumbledore then told Snape and Holly to take her to St. Mungo's. He was going to the Ministry, he was pretty sure that's where the students had gone. He told both of them to return to Hogwarts; with himself and McGonagall gone, the school needed all the capable wizards on hand that they could get.

Holly didn't question what she was told to do, but felt she could have been more useful to the Order at the Ministry. She did as she was told, and thankfully the school had a relatively calm evening. It was not until the early hours of the morning that she learned what had gone on that night. Upon his return, Dumbledore called Holly, Snape and a few others up to his office to tell them what had transpired. Harry had seen a vision that he had been certain was real, of Sirius being tortured by Voldemort in the Hall of Prophecy. When he used the fireplace, the house elf had said the Sirius was "out". Harry took that as confirmation of his suspicion. He did not realize that Sirius was merely in another room of the house. Fearing Sirius was in mortal danger, he and his friends got rid of Umbridge by leading her into the forest under the pretense of showing her a secret weapon. They led her to Hagrid's giant half-brother, and the already angry centaur herd. She insulted the centaurs and was carried off. At this point, the students got out of the forest and took thestrals to London. They went into the Ministry and found no one there, but did retrieve the prophecy made about Harry by Professor Trelawney. They were then surprised by a handful of Death Eaters, and a running battle ensued. The Order members arrived to find all six students alive and with only minor injuries. They fought the Death Eaters and, though no one was badly injured, Sirius did have a very close call, narrowly escaping alive. Dumbledore arrived, as did Voldemort himself. The two dueled, and just before Voldemort disappeared, the Minister and several other officials arrived, catching a good look at him. This forced Fudge to admit Voldemort's return and Dumbledore was reinstated as Headmaster. He and Harry both received a public apology which would appear in the morning paper.

Holly was relieved that everything had worked out okay, and thrilled that they were rid of Umbridge. The students involved all received some time off because a couple had minor injuries, and Harry had been possessed by Voldemort. He was understandably shaken by the experience, and by coming so close to losing Sirius.

After he dismissed the teachers, Holly stayed behind, wanting to talk to him for a moment. But before she could even say anything he said " I know you probably want to go see Remus. If that's what you want, you are free to do so. Today is Saturday, you don't have classes, so you don't have any obligations for the day."

"I will then. I know you said he's okay, but I just want to see for myself. I will be back by dinner, though."

She went to Grimmauld Place, and was admitted by Remus. When he had closed the door, she sighed " You are okay."

"Yes, but are you?"

"I am now, but I was quite worried about you last night. It was hard not knowing what was going on."

"I asked Dumbledore to tell you I was okay. Did he forget?"

"No, he told me, but I just needed to see for myself."

"Well, I'm glad you came, but you look as tired as I feel. I suspect we could both do with some sleep. Would it be okay for us to visit later?"

"Sure. We'll both enjoy it more if we're rested."

"Would you like me to go back with you?"

"No, that's okay. No sense in you losing more sleep. I'll take a carriage from Hogsmeade to the castle. I appreciate the offer though."

Sirius was sitting in the kitchen, and overheard the entire exchange.

"Remus, why did you do that, turn her away like that?"

"She looked tired, and I am tired."

"But she was up all night worrying about you, and then she took the time to come here and inspect you for herself to see that Dumbledore wasn't minimizing some injury, and you tell her to go home."

"Dumbledore wasn't hiding anything; I am fine, we both know that."

"The woman just needed to see for herself. She's crazy about you, that's why she was worried, why she came here. She looked like she was about to burst to hug you...or didn't you notice the way she moved..she caught herself and scratched her back instead."

"I didn't notice. But there's no way she can be crazy about me...besides why would someone as young, beautiful and wealthy as she is be interested in an old, poor werewolf? It just doesn't make sense."

"Love never does, Remus. And I'm telling you, she is falling for you, if she's not already there yet. You really need to apologize to her if you want to keep seeing her. And you need to sort out your feelings for her, soon."

"I guess I do need to apologize, I was rather blunt. I think I'll go write her a note."

Upon her arrival at school, Holly went to her quarters. There she changed into her gown and fell asleep very quickly. She awoke several hours later, somewhere around noon, quite hungry. She dressed and went downstairs for lunch. After she ate, she decided to go to Hogsmeade to check her mail. She had not done that this week. She wasn't really expecting anything, but was handed a letter which she was told had just arrived. It was, of course from Remus. She opened it, curious as to why he'd written so soon after seeing her. In the letter he apologized for his bluntness that morning and said that "though I was tired, there's never a good excuse to turn away a friend, especially one who's concerned about you." He further said that he really hoped she would join him for dinner that evening, that he'd like to go out somewhere, if she didn't mind doing something different.

She searched her bag for a piece of parchment, and took a quill from the desk. She quickly wrote back that "of course I accept your apology. Don't worry about anything. It would take a lot more than that to hurt my feelings; I treasure our relationship and would not allow something that small to ruin it. As for dinner, yes, I'll go. Anywhere you want is fine, just let me know. Send your answer to the castle, or use the fireplace. I'll be working in my quarters most of the afternoon."

She then signed the note, sealed it up and sent it to him. She went back to the castle and, true to her word, spent the next hour or so working on grading papers. She looked up and realized it had only been an hour since her return, so she really wasn't expecting an answer yet. Then, her fireplace made a hissing noise and when she looked, there was Remus' head. She walked over to it and knelt down in front of it.

He spoke " I got your letter. Thanks for being so kind about this morning. I'm glad you weren't upset with me. As for tonight, how about we go to the Three Broomsticks? It's got better food than the Leaky Cauldron or the Hog's Head."

"Sure, that sounds great. When do you want me to meet you there?"

"Around 6:00p.m sounds good. I'll meet you at the gates of the school."

"Okay."

" I've actually been hoping for Umbridge to leave since I got back from my mission so that I could ask you out to dinner. With her gone, we can relax a little bit, for now."

"Yes, we can...and I'm thrilled about that too. I was getting tired of only being able to see you but for short periods of time, and always having to worry about what she might do. I know worse is to come, but for now, we can enjoy ourselves ."

"So, I'll see you at six?"

"Definitely."

The fire hissed again, then went to normal. She got up and almost floated back to her desk. This was a dream come true...Remus Lupin was interested in her and wanted to take her to dinner. She almost couldn't believe it. She hoped that she was correct in her understanding of him being interested in her. She knew she had gotten quite attached to him since they'd met. At first, she thought it was just a renewal of her teenage crush, but she had since realized it was different. This was more than that. She really loved this man...he was so kind, thoughtful and caring; in the days they had spent together she had learned that they were very much alike. She hoped he felt the same.

She forced herself to concentrate on her work for the next couple of hours, which was all it took to finish the stack of papers she was grading. She was excited, but tried to tell herself not to get her hopes up. He may only be wanting to spend some time with her away from everyone else. He might also just want to go somewhere else to eat for a change of scenery.

However, she decided to dress like she would for a romantic dinner date. She picked out a soft, knee length, deep purple skirt and a silky, silver-grey blouse. She curled her hair, then brushed it so that the curls were very soft and loose. She then walked down to the gates of the castle and met him.

His eyes widened when he saw her; he'd never seen her dressed like this before " You look absolutely beautiful."

"Thanks...you look great yourself." She was being honest, he was dressed in a very nice chocolate brown suit that went well with his hair and made his blue eyes stand out.

They walked to the pub, and found a booth near the back of the room. It was just noisy enough that they could talk without anyone hearing them plainly.

After the waitress had dropped off the menus, he spoke " I know I already apologized for this morning, but I just feel the need to say it face to face. I really did not think before I spoke to you, and it probably sounded like I didn't want to see you. But that wasn't the case, I was just so tired I knew we couldn't enjoy it."

"Don't worry about it. I appreciate you wanting to tell me in person, but I really hope you have not been worrying about that all day. As I said in my letter, I treasure our friendship and wouldn't let something that small ruin it."

"I appreciate that. I haven't really been worried about it, but just like you needed to see me to know I was okay, I needed to see you to know that you weren't upset either."

"Well, I'm not. So, shall we relax and enjoy our dinner?"

"Yes, I think so. Do you see something you like?"

They both looked over the menu, and shortly the waitress came back. They ordered, and while they waited for the food to arrive, Remus talked a bit more about the incident at the Ministry.

"It was really good timing that we got there when we did. Harry and his friends had put up an excellent fight, and had actually wounded a couple of the Death Eaters. But, a couple of them had been wounded too, and that only left four truly able to fight. The Death Eaters would have likely finished them off fairly easily if we had not arrived. Then, Bellatrix was going after Sirius and nearly killed him...the curse hit the stone he was standing behind, causing some of it to fall on him. Harry thought he was dead, so he and Neville Longbottom went after her. She led them away from the others, out into the atrium. Then, after Voldemort arrived, she disappeared. It was there that Dumbledore dueled with him, and that he possessed Harry briefly. Those of us that were fighting the other Death Eaters had to restrain them until the Aurors arrived, so I did not actually see what happened after Harry and Neville left the room. But Dumbledore told me about it later. Harry felt pretty bad once he realized that he had been manipulated; Voldemort had planted the image in his mind that caused him to go to the Ministry."

" Dumbledore didn't give me those details. He just said Sirius had been nearly killed, and that you were okay. I guess he knew that was most important to me. He did tell me about the incident in the atrium, though. At least now, the minister is finally admitting what's going on."

"Which brings me to what I wanted to ask you next. Now that he has admitted what's happening, will you go back to the Ministry? Surely he will change his attitudes about arresting people."

"I've thought about that, but, no, I've come to really enjoy teaching. Sure, I miss certain parts of being an Auror, but I can use those skills to help the Order. I'm happy with my job and it is fulfilling to be influencing young witches and wizards. In fact, I'm not going to change subjects, even though Defense Against the Dark Arts is open again. I'm thinking that job is jinxed, and I'd rather stay in a position I can keep."

"I'm glad to hear that. It will be considerably easier for us to spend time together if you're not right under the minister's nose. Even though his attitude has changed somewhat, I am reluctant to believe that everyone in the Ministry will share his views, and that could mean some difficulties for ministry employees who do admit to Voldemort's return. At least at Hogwarts, you know where you stand with everyone."

Just then, the waitress returned with their food. As they ate, they talked a bit about what they hoped would happen with regard to the situation as a whole, that it would be great if the Ministry would go after the Death Eaters and that they hoped the Order's membership would grow . They also hoped that the public would become more aware of being safe and careful, and would be better protected by the Ministry.

After they finished eating, they put their plates on the end of the table and sat back, not wanting the night to end yet, but not sure of what to do next. Since it was a warm, pleasant spring night, they decided to go for a walk. Holly offered to split the tab, but Remus said he wanted to treat her, so he paid. He knew his way around the area surrounding Hogsmeade far better than Holly did, so she let him lead her. They decided to stop on the shore of the lake opposite the Hogwarts grounds. They found a beautiful spot near a small clump of oak trees, but it still had a decent view of the sky and the lake. Remus put his traveling cloak on the ground so that Holly would have something to sit on without getting her skirt dirty.

He looked up at the sky and said "The sky's beautiful tonight...it's as if you can see every star. I really enjoy stargazing, which I guess seems odd for a werewolf. But it's only the full moon that causes any problems, so the rest of the month I can enjoy."

"I like to stargaze too, and this is as near a perfect spot as you can find, except maybe a tower or an open field. I like the way everything's reflected on the lake, it makes it feel almost endless."

"I found this area while I was at school here, one of the times I transformed. I didn't remember it myself, but Sirius and James did, ans on Hogsmeade weekends, we'd come here sometimes. It gave us a quiet place to plan our adventures for the next month or to just talk about things we didn't want anyone else to hear. It was a nice change from trying to find secluded corners of the castle or grounds."

"I can see how it would be good for that. Probably very few other people know how to get here."

"Speaking of friends reminds me of this morning. You seemed so relieved to see me , and you said you'd been worried about me all night. I know Dumbledore would have made sure you realized that being killed in our work in the Order is a risk we're all taking."

"Of course he talked to me about that, in fact he stressed it to me. I accepted that I could be killed in the line of duty when I was only 18...it's nothing new to me. And I know any of my friends in the Order could be killed as well. But it's only normal to worry about someone you love. I was worried about you when you were with the werewolves too. I didn't let it keep me from doing my job, and it didn't interfere with my work last night either. I was concerned about everyone, but you more than the rest."

Remus seems very startled at this statement. "Wait a minute...you said it's normal to worry about someone you love; are you saying you love me?"

"Yes, I am. I love you Remus. I can't say exactly when I knew I loved you, but I do. I can't deny it or change it, and I don't want to."

The expression on his face was a mixture of confusion and fear. "How could you let yourself fall in love with me? I'm old, poor, and a werewolf. I'm an outcast...nobody would want to have anything to do with you if we were a couple."

"First of all, you are a kind, caring, wonderful man who is exactly what I've always wanted...someone real who likes me for myself. You're not old, you're only five years older than me, not even forty. And we both know that for wizards, we're practically kids...we've got decades before we'll be considered old. As for what anyone else would say, I don't care. The only friends I have are the Order and my family. The Order has already accepted you, and I know my family will as well. If for some reason they don't, it's okay with me... I live my own life anyway. And as for you being a werewolf, I see no reason one day a month should keep us apart. Are you trying to say you don't have feelings for me at all?"

He was obviously stunned...he had not expected anything like this.

"No, it's not that. I never let myself think it even possible that I'd ever fall in love, or that anyone else would love me. I do care for you, but I have never thought of you as anything as a friend. I've never allowed myself to think that way about anyone...I just convinced myself over the years that it was impossible. Please don't be hurt by this, I just need time to think. The idea that you would really be interested in me, even knowing my condition is incredible to me. I don't really know how I feel. I guess that sounds silly, but it's the truth."

If she had heard this from anyone else, Holly would probably not have believed it, she would have assumed it was just a way to buy time to let her down easy. But knowing what she did about him, she realized he was telling her the truth. In their conversations, she had realized that he had always been ashamed of his condition, and that he had very rarely encountered anyone who liked him.

So, it made sense to her that he might have genuinely thought it would be impossible for someone to love him. Therefore, she felt it best to accept his words, and let him have the time and space he needed.

"Take all the time you need. I'll wait for you. But no, you don't sound silly. You sound like someone who has had a new possibility laid at his feet. Why don't we call it a night, and you can get back to me when you're ready?"

He agreed, and they walked back they way they had come, then they parted ways at the school gates. Holly walked up the driveway lost in thought. The night had not gone as she'd hoped, but she sensed in Remus' response something that told her there might be some hope. He had said he cared about her, but wasn't sure how he felt beyond that. Maybe he did love her, and just had not allowed himself to recognize it for what it was. But she also knew that she might have just put a large amount of awkwardness in the best friendship she'd ever had with a man. It was possible she'd ruined it. She really hoped that she hadn't.

When Remus arrived home that night, he called Sirius from the stairs...his head was spinning from all that had been said, and he wanted to run everything by Sirius. He couldn't believe Sirius had been right about her...not that Sirius was stupid or anything, but how could he be so sure, without really talking to her?

Sirius joined him soon, and asked "How was your date with Holly?"

"It was fine until she told me she loves me. Then I asked her how could she, didn't she know being with me would make her an outcast. Didn't she realize she could be infected too? How could she want someone like me? Sirius, she had answers for every one of those questions...and not just it'll be okay. She's really thought about this."

" I had a feeling she had, she's not stupid. As for her being an outcast, think about that...she's already said she's got no other friends except the Order. We won't turn our backs on her for being with you...though I may have to slap you if you don't acknowledge your own feelings. Think about how you react to her, Remus. I've seen you come home from being with her...you almost float when you walk. You even say her name differently than you do other people's. And you blush almost every time you make direct eye contact. You've got it as bad as she does, but she's ready to admit it."

"But how can I ask her to risk becoming a werewolf by being with me? "

" It's a risk she's obviously willing to take. The question remains, though, Remus, Do you love her; would you want to spend the rest of your life with her?"

"Yes, I do love her. I think that's why I'm so concerned about hurting her. But I also can't bear the thought of not having her in my life. I don't know what I'd do if I never saw her again. She was the one happy thing I had to think about while I was away. This sounds odd, but she can make me feel so much more human than I ever thought possible. The things she says to me, the way she's always so concerned about my feelings...no one I've known has been quite like that since I was friends with Lily. It is a bit hard to believe, though, that someone that intelligent and gorgeous could be interested in me."

"Well believe it, because she is. But you need to tell her how you feel, soon. You don't want her to get away."

"I will. You should have seen her tonight; she was stunning...I almost felt my heart stop when I saw her. The outfit she was wearing fit her like a glove, and the top shimmered in the moonlight. Her hair was loose and curled...I just wanted to run my fingers through it. I've never seen her dressed like that before."

"Yeah, you've got it bad alright."

"Well, thanks for making me listen to myself. I'm going to bed now."

Holly arrived at her quarters, changed into her pajamas, and asked the kitchen for a plate of chocolate chip cookies and a mug of cocoa. She found a good book, curled up in a chair at the fireside and nibbled while she read. Finally, around midnight, she got in bed. Her sleep that night was fitful...she had hoped that the reading and cocoa would settle her down, but she kept worrying over the events of the night. She'd bared her heart to him, and now she was worried about how he would react. She finally drifted into a fairly deep sleep around 5:00 a.m., and did not wake up until nearly 11:00 a.m.


	5. A New Beginning

***A New Beginning***

She got up, dressed and had a late breakfast in her quarters. She was trying to decide what to do with her day when her fireplace started hissing. She looked, and there was Remus' head in the fire. He asked if he could come to her quarters so they could talk, and she agreed. A few seconds later, he stepped out of the fireplace and into the living room.

He said "I'm so sorry about last night, that I questioned your feelings. It was just unexpected; I guess I've gotten so accustomed to thinking of myself as an unlovable monster that I didn't believe it possible for anyone to see me differently."

"Well, I don't see you as a monster, and certainly not as unlovable. You are a wonderful man who just happens to be sick. Your condition doesn't matter to me though...I love you for your human self, that's the only part of you that matters to me."

"I did a lot of thinking last night and I realized that I do love you. I've let my condition, the fear and shame that comes with it be in control of so much of my life for a long time that it kept me from recognizing what had happened. I took your actions as just signs of a strong friendship, and thought that my feelings for you were the same thing. But now that I have set that aside, and considered only the feelings of my own heart, it's obvious that I am very much in love with you...and I feel somewhat foolish for thinking otherwise."

As he had been talking, Holly had taken his hand and held it. When he stopped speaking, she dropped it and wrapped both arms around him, with her face on his chest. He embraced her as well, holding her tightly and kissing her on the top of the head. They stood there, enjoying each other's warmth and the sense of elation at knowing how they felt about each other. After several long minutes, they separated and sat down on the small couch by the fireplace.

Remus broke the silence first. "I talked to Sirius about this last night...I go to him whenever I need a different perspective or opinion. When I told him I didn't know how I felt, but I thought I love you, and he said it's obvious you're crazy about her .He pointed out that I even say your name differently than other people's and that I blush almost every time I look at you. He reminded me that's not just friendship, and if you'd stop thinking of yourself as a monster, you'd see that. He then went on to tell me that if I let you go, I was crazy. His bluntness was one of several things that helped me realize my true feelings. I haven't gone a day since I got back from my mission without thinking about you."

"It's been the same for me. At first I thought that I felt the way I did because we'd spent so much time reminiscing. But as time went by, I realized that wasn't the reason. While you were gone, I worried about you, and when you were at the Ministry I did too. I was afraid, not only of losing you, but of you dying not knowing how I feel. That's why I told you, I simply couldn't keep it to myself any longer."

"Since we are an 'official' couple now, would you like to have dinner again tonight to celebrate? We could pack a picnic and go back by the lake where we were last night. I'll bring the food."

"That sounds great. It's 1:00 p.m. now, so if we try, we can both get a nap and still be up and ready for dinner at 6:30 or 7:00 p.m."

"Yes, that sounds good. Do you want me to pick you up from here in your quarters or the school gates?"

"I think the gates would be best. Since Dumbledore doesn't care what I do on weekends, I won't bother him about it. I'm sure we'll be back at a reasonable time."

"That's alright with me. I'll see you at the gates at 6:30. Have a good nap."

"You too."

He left the way he had come, but she noticed he had a bright smile on his face. She was thrilled to know he loved her too, and she could still hear his voice in her head, saying 'I love you'. She decided she would take a nap if she could. She changed into her pajamas and curled up on her bed. Before she got too comfortable, she asked one of the school elves to wake her up at 5:00 p.m. She fell asleep in just a few minutes. It seemed as if she'd just gone to sleep when she felt a gentle nudge on her shoulder. She opened her eyes, and there was Dobby. "Miss, it's 5p.m...you asked me to wake you."

"Thanks Dobby."

"Is there anything else you need?"

"No, thank you, though. But if anyone asks about me, tell them I'll be out tonight."

"I will Miss."

She got up and walked over to the wardrobe, thinking of what she would wear. She decided that since this was a picnic, she would dress more casually than she had the previous evening. She chose a pair fo dark blue velvet pants, a short sleeve chocolate brown sweater and black ankle high boots. She wore her hair loose, but not curled this time.

By the time she was finished getting dressed she had about half an hour until she was supposed to meet Remus. She decided to leave anyway...maybe he'd be a little early. She walked slowly once she was outside, enjoying the night and the excitement she was feeling at spending an evening with Remus as his girlfriend, not just as a friend.

When she arrived at the gate, he wasn't there, but it was only about five minutes until she heard the distinct 'pop' that always accompanies apparition. It was him, looking good in a pair of blue jeans and bright blue sweater. He was carrying a large picnic basket that looked rather heavy.

He said " I hope you haven't been waiting long."

"I've only been here about five minutes. I know I'm early, but I was anxious to see you. That basket looks heavy...do you need some help?"

"No, I've got it. It's big, but not as heavy as it looks. You ready?"

"Sure, lets go"

So they set off for the spot they'd been to the previous night. In a few minutes, they arrived, and Remus set the basket on the ground. He opened it and pulled out a large blanket. "This took up most of the space in there, but we'll have enough room for everything."

Holly helped him spread it out, and as she bent over to straighten the corners, she caught a whiff of the food in the basket. "This smells delicious...what did you bring?"

" I hope it is as good as it smells. I won't tell you what it is, but I did cook this myself. I don't cook as often since Molly is around so much, but I do enjoy it when I get the chance."

"Well, I'm ready...I haven't eaten since breakfast."

"Me either. I slept for about three hours, and then I got up and prepared this." As he's talking, he's pulling things out of the basket....a bottle of red wine, two glasses, plates, silverware, then the food. There was a large covered plate with a steak big enough for them to share, some roasted small potatoes, a salad, dinner rolls, and for dessert, chocolate dipped strawberries.

Holly's eyes widened "This is your idea of a picnic? That's a restaurant dinner for two...the only thing you didn't bring is candles. But I'm not complaining, it looks wonderful."

"I actually thought about candles, but guessed that the stars would be better anyway. As for the food, I just cooked what sounded good to me."

He uncorked the wine and poured them each a glass. Then he lifted the covers off the dishes and put food on both plates, handing Holly hers first. They both ate fairly quietly, just commenting on the food here and there. Holly was amazed...if this was a fair example of his cooking, he could outdo Mrs. Weasley. Everything about the meal was perfect, and sharing it under a starlit sky with the man she loved just made it even better.

Once they had finished, he cleaned the dishes with a spell, then put them in a bag that was in the basket. They moved the picnic basket out of the way so they could stretch out on the blanket. Then they laid down on their backs, and Holly put her head on his chest. They lay there in the quiet, listening to the crickets and looking at the stars.

Holly broke the silence "I'm so glad we've got a little time to relax. Umbridge is gone, summer will be here soon, and Dumbledore thinks it will be a few weeks before Voldemort does anything overt again. He figures that not retrieving the prophecy will cause him to need to change his plans a little. It will give us some time to be together."

"Yes it will and I hope we can take advantage of this break."

"I think we will. I've got a lot of things I want to do with you."

"So do I. I could make a fairly long list...pretty much anything sounds good as long as your with me. It doesn't need to be going anywhere or doing anything special, just spending time together is fine with me."

"I'm the same way. I could lay here and name dozens of things I'd like to do, but we'll just take it one day at a time. For now, though, I just want to enjoy this evening with you."

"Me too. Tonight is a perfect night."

They laid there like that, just enjoying the quiet and the feel of really being together, for about an hour. Remus remembered the dessert and asked if she wanted any. She did, and so did he, so they both sat up. He pulled the bowl out of the basket and they fed each other strawberries until they were all gone. As they ate, he looked out over the lake and said if it were a little later in the year, she'd love to go swimming. They decided to add that to their list of things they wanted to do that summer.

Holly laughed, for no apparent reason, and said "The last 48 hours sure have been a ride. We've gone from wondering if we'd see each other alive again to planning our summer holidays together."

"From do I love you to yes I'm crazy about you." He looked at her, taking in every detail of her face. He pulled her close to him and kissed her full on the lips. It was a good thing she was sitting down because her knees would likely have turned to jelly if she'd been standing.

He pulled away for a moment, but kept his arms around her. Rather than try to say anything, she leaned forward and kissed him again. They lingered in each other's arms, not wanting the moment to end.

An owl hooted loudly overhead, breaking the silence and reminding them of the world around them. They looked up at the sky and guessed that it was rather late.

She said "I don't want to, but I really should go. I've got an early class tomorrow."

"I'll walk to the castle with you."

Then they got up, folded the blanket and put it in the basket. He flicked his wand and the basket went sailing off into the night, headed for Grimmauld Place.

They set off for the castle, their arms around each other's waists. When they reached the steps, they embraced and kissed one last time. As he pulled away, Remus whispered "Goodnight sweetheart".

"Goodnight, my love."

After she said this, she smiled at him, then reluctantly went inside. She was so lost in the feel of the night that she practically floated to her quarters. She laughed at herself for getting so caught up in her feelings, but she was so happy she didn't care. As she dressed for bed, she could still feel the warmth of his parting embrace. She had no doubt she would sleep well that night.

Remus walked up the castle driveway, his mind was still on her; her smell lingered in his mind. She smelled wonderful, her perfume was something flowery and delicate. Of course, her kiss was very fresh in his memory, it was so sweet. And she'd said his was perfect, that really surprised him. He was thrilled at the thought that he'd given her a pleasant surprise.

He apparated home, and was taking off his cloak when Sirius came downstairs.

"So, your date must have gone well tonight, you were humming. And you're smiling."

"Well is an understatement. Tonight was absolutely perfect. The best night I've ever had in my life. We had a wonderful meal under a beautiful starlit sky, we talked for a while, and cuddled a bit. Then I kissed her. And she said it was perfect."

"Sounds like you really made up for last night. And you worked up the nerve to kiss her, that's great."

"Not once, but three times. Twice at the lake, and a goodnight kiss at the steps of the castle."

Sirius whistled "Not bad for a guy who less than twenty-four hours ago couldn't admit someone could love him, or that he was in love."

"I'd like to think she was satisfied with my progress. Love has to be the most wonderful feeling in the world, now that I've quit suppressing it."

"It suits you well. I'm going to bed now. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Sirius"

Like a schoolgirl with spring fever, Holly spent much of her free time looking forward to the weekend. However, she was disciplined enough to prevent her giddiness from interfering with her work.

On Friday morning Remus asked her by floo network if she'd like to go out for dinner and dancing. She accepted and they agreed she would meet him at the gates of the school at 5 p.m.

Her classes that day went quickly. As soon as she was done, she went upstairs and changed clothes. She chose a white lace over pink satin top and a dark blue denim skirt with light tan pumps. At a quarter to five, she was at the gates, waiting for him. Within a couple of minutes, he arrived, wearing dark grey pants and light blue silky shirt.

"Hello, beautiful. Looks like you're ready."

" Thanks, and yes, I'm ready. I've been ready since this morning. You look quite handsome yourself."

"Thanks. Let's go then."

He took her hand and they apparated to Diagon Alley. They found the club that they were going to and went in. The place was what you'd expect from a nightclub- dark and noisy. There was a band playing on a small stage in the far end of the room. Remus spotted a table near the dance floor, so they sat down and had a couple of drinks.

Then, the band played a slow song, so they got up and danced. Holly loved the way it felt when he held her in his arms. After the slow song ended, they danced to a couple of faster tunes. She had forgotten how much she enjoyed dancing until New Year's Eve, and was really quite excited when Remus suggested coming here.

About four songs later, they decided to sit out a few and see if the food was any good. They ordered a light meal, which turned out better than they expected, then sat and talked for a while. They danced to several more songs, then decided to leave.

It was still early, only 9 p.m., so they strolled through Diagon Alley. Several of the shops were still open, so they went into some of them and browsed. Around 10:30, they decided to head back to Hogwarts. They apparated as far as they could, then holding hands, walked the rest of the way.

They took their time walking up the castle driveway, enjoying each other's company. At the steps, Remus asked " Have you got plans for tomorrow?"

"Actually, I've got a small mountain of work to do. I've got essays and homework to grade, and final exams to make. I really should spend the rest of the weekend on them."

"Is there anything I can help with?"

"You could grade the homework. But you know that can be tedious work. Do you really want to spend the day doing that if you don't need to?"

"I would like to, just to be able to spend the day with you. Who knows, if we finish early, we could go for a walk by the lake."

"If you really want to do it, I'd like the help. And if we finish early, I'm sure we'll enjoy the time."

"Great, What time do you want to start?"

"Not before about 1 p.m. I plan to sleep late, and I'll need to be awake a little while before I start."

"I'll see you around 1:30 then."

"Okay, sounds good."

"Goodnight, then sweetheart."

"Goodnight"

They shared a warm, tender kiss, then he released her, and she went inside.

Saturday is a warm beautiful day. Holly slept until 10 a.m, then got up and got ready for her day's work. She hated the thought of being cooped up inside on a day like this, but knew if she went outside to work, especially with Remus, she'd be too distracted to accomplish anything. She contented herself with the idea that if they finished, or at least got mostly done tonight, they could do something fun together.

True to his word, at 1:30, Remus appeared in her fireplace. She told him she was ready, and he stepped out onto the carpet.

They spent the day working, he graded the homework by the answer keys she provided, she worked on the essays. The time was made more enjoyable by sharing some of the silly mistakes the students made.

Every hour or so, they took a break, putting aside the papers and talking, usually while one or both walked around the room to stretch.

About 6:30, they decided to stop for dinner. He had finished all of the homework, and she only had a few essays left. They summoned one of the elves from the kitchen and asked for dinner. Holly decided that to compensate for not going outside, she would open the windows not far from the table and move the table closer to it. This provided a nice breeze and a decent view of the grounds.

After dinner, she finished the essays while Remus watched her work. He'd offered to help, but there was really nothing he could do. By about 8:30, she'd finished the last one, so they decided to go for a walk on the grounds.

They went outside to the near side of the lake, found a good spot for stargazing, and sat down to relax. They spent an hour and a half looking at the sky and making plans for the summer.

At 10, she decided she needed to get to bed. This time, when they arrived at the steps, she said

"Why don't you come upstairs with me and use the fireplace?"

"I appreciate that, I will."

They went back to her quarters, and as he prepared to leave, she thanked him for his time.

"Having your help made the work go so much faster than I could have done alone. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome. I enjoyed spending the time with you."

"I always enjoy spending time with you too. I wish I could say we'd get together again tomorrow, but I've got to put together final exams. That will be at least a full days' work, and unfortunately I need to do that myself."

"Then I guess I will see you another day. Don't work too hard, though."

"I won't. I love you."

"I love you too. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

He stepped into the fireplace, threw in the glittery green powder and left for Grimmauld Place.

There were only five weeks of the school year left, so Holly was very busy. Like most teachers, she assigned homework until about a week before exams began. The assignments were intended to prepare the students for the exams, but the all had to be graded and returned. She also had a few students who wanted some additional help preparing for the exams. This caused most of her paperwork to fall on weekends, so she didn't see much of Remus until school was actually over. She did talk to him most evenings by floo network for a little while, but that was all she had time for.

This end of year craziness made her grateful he'd been a teacher too and understood what was going on.


	6. Summer Bliss

Once school was out, they were free to see each other as often as they liked. Most weeks, that was three or four times...if they had Order meetings, it might be every day. The only time they were really apart was for the day of, and the day after the full moon. Even though Remus loved her and knew she accepted his condition, he couldn't quite bring himself to let her see him in his transformed state. Holly didn't push the issue, she knew he would resolve it in his own time.

They enjoyed their time together, whether they went somewhere or just spent the day at one of their homes. They were both happier than they'd ever been. For Holly, the last few months had been an exhilarating experience...she was truly in love, and she had no doubt that they'd be together forever. Along with that, she'd made some close friends within the Order, specifically in the Weasley family. They seemed to have almost adopted her , and she was pleased with that. They were a warm, caring, close-knit family and she felt she fit right in. She had gotten to know most of them well. There was something she liked about them all, from the twins' practical jokes and Ginny's sarcastic sense of humor to the serious side she found in the adults.

This relationship had not completely eclipsed the one she had with Alyssa. She still considered her a very close friend, just perhaps not as close as they had been. It wasn't that she valued her "sister" any less, but there had been some distance creep into their relationship over the last several years.

However, Holly had written to her through the year to keep her updated as much as possible about her life. Since Umbridge's departure, she had written a long letter telling her openly about her romance with Remus. She also wrote to her "parents" giving them the same information. Alyssa's response had been cheerful, she was glad that Holly had found someone she really loved, and didn't have the slightest problem with his condition. Jane's letter was much more cautious. She said she was glad Holly was happy, but questioned whether she was really in love. She also seemed to not believe it possible for a werewolf to be safe, or that he could love her. Holly hoped that meeting Remus would show her she was wrong.

Holly had mentioned in her letter to Alyssa the birthday dinner their parents gave each girl every year...Alyssa's was coming up soon, and Holly thought she would bring Remus. Alyssa said it sounded like a good idea to her, it would give everyone a chance to meet him. When she mentioned the idea to Remus, he was nervous but agreed to go. He knew she wanted him to meet her family.

On July 12, Remus came to Holly's house, and from there they apparated to an alleyway a couple of blocks from her parents' home. As they walked the rest of the way, Holly hoped that her parents would react better than the letter indicated.

When they arrived, Holly rang the doorbell, and was admitted by Jane. Her "mom" hugged her, then Holly introduced Remus to her. When Remus extended his hand, Jane shook it, but did so quickly and with a stiffness that revealed she'd rather not touch him. Jane led them into the living room. Alyssa immediately walked over to her and hugged her, then shook Remus' hand enthusiastically. Holly introduced him to her, then to David , her "dad"; Alyssa's husband Steven, and their son Mark. Alyssa's family received them warmly, but Jane and David were obviously uncomfortable having a werewolf in the house.

Holly wished Alyssa a Happy Birthday and congratulated her on her pregnancy.

"Thank you. And I'm glad to see you looking so happy."

"I'm happier than I've been in a while. Remus and I are totally in love, which is wonderful. And I'm really enjoying my new job. It's much more satisfying than my last few months at the Ministry were."

"So how did you two meet?"

"A mutual friend introduced us. It was a work related meeting, but we had so much fun visiting afterward that we kept getting together. After a while, we really started dating."

"That's great. I'm glad you've found someone."

At this point, David addressed Remus.

"You're a werewolf, right?"

"Yes sir"

"So, you turn into an animal and run around biting people?"

"No sir. Once a month, at the full moon, I do change into a wolf. But I've never deliberately bitten anyone. There is a potion available that I take which keeps me from biting anyone."

"You said you've never deliberately bitten anyone. Are you saying you've bitten people by accident? How can that be?"

"There have been times when I couldn't get my potion for different reasons. When that happens and I change, I forget that I'm not supposed to bite. It's part of the condition, I have no control over it. The illness causes amnesia; when I return to my human form, I have no memory of what I've done. That's why I can't be completely sure I've never bitten anyone."

Before David could speak again, Holly said

"That won't be a problem anymore. He has a reliable source for his potion now, and I see to it that he takes it."

Alyssa too could tell David was getting ready to push Remus further, so she asked

"Is dinner ready yet? I've been looking forward to this all day."

Jane said it was, and they all went into the dining room. The meal was nice, but Holly couldn't help wondering to herself what Remus could have done with the same food. They talked a bit as they ate, but there was still tension in the air.

After dinner, Alyssa opened her gifts, and it wasn't long until Holly decided she was ready to leave. Alyssa walked to the door with them. She stepped outside and apologized to them for her parents' behavior.

"I promise you that Steven and I are very happy for you." She looked at Remus "We have no problem with you being a werewolf. We are both Healers and work with werewolves sometimes, so we understand much more about your condition than they ever could."

Remus replied "I'm glad to know that not everyone in the room hated me."

Holly then spoke up " I'm really disappointed in them. I thought they'd be more open-minded, especially with you explaining so much. By the way, you did a great job of that. Personally, I was biting my tongue to keep from asking him what made it his business anyway."

She put her arm around Remus, then told Alyssa they needed to go, but that she was glad for the chance to visit with her.

Upon their arrival at Holly's house, she invited im in. He accepted, they went inside and sat on the sofa. She faced him, trying to come up with the words to express her feelings about the evening.

"I am so sorry I put you through that. I knew they had some reservations, but I honestly thought that meeting you would help them at least be open to the idea. I didn't expect David to put you through the inquisition. I'm really deeply disappointed in them."

"Apology accepted, not that you needed to apologize. You were trying to help them overcome their fears and prejudices, but rarely can one person do that, and if the other person isn't willing, it can't be done. But I appreciate your efforts. Few people would have even tried."

"I'm going to talk to them further about it in a few days. But if they can't accept you, then they will lose me. You mean more to me, than they have in years."

"I don't want to break up your family. This is one reason I've so rarely been seriously involved with anyone."

"Don't look at it that way. My relationship with them has been rocky for years. There's so much about me, and our world, they don't understand that it really caused problems. But it's not just that they don't understand, they don't want to learn. Most importantly, though is the fact that they disapprove of the way I live my life. They feel I should have already married; they don't realize that most of the men I've dated in the last few years were after my money. There's a long list of other things that we've disagreed about since I came of age, and our relationship has steadily worsened because of it. I've tried talking to them, but it has no effect."

"I'm sorry to hear you've had such a rough time. I thought you said they were good to you?"

"They were when I was young. They never mistreated me in any way. They took care of all my needs and most of my wants. But when I turned seventeen, the problems started. So, it's not something new, and I don't blame you for it. Please don't let this come between us."

He took her in his arms, in a warm, tender embrace. "No way am I going to let that come between us, and I'll be here for you, whatever may happen."

At this, she looked up into those beautiful blue eyes that always got to her, and she kissed him.

"I love you so much."

"I love you too."

They stayed there, embracing, for several minutes. She looked up at him and said "You know, I could stay here like this all night."

"So could I. But I think we both need some sleep. And as much as I hate to, I really should leave."

"I suppose you're right. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, maybe."

He stood up to leave. "Okay, good night"

She stood and kissed him again. "Goodnight"

Over the next couple of weeks, Holly made several attempts to contact Jane and David. Three times she went to their house, but they were gone each time. She sent a couple of letters, one was brought back by the same owl, opened but with no response. The other one they answered several days later, in a very clipped, angry tone. They criticized her choice of a boyfriend and said they hoped she would find someone better. Though they didn't say it exactly, they made it clear their feelings had not changed and they considered the matter closed.

In early August, they decided to go back to 'their spot' on the lake for a swim. They brought a picnic again, but this time it was more typical food...fried chicken, mashed potatoes, soft drinks, and a chocolate cake for dessert. They got there around 5 p.m., just a couple hours before sunset. They stripped down to the swimsuits they were wearing, then ran out into the lake. They spent a couple of hours swimming and splashing before getting out just as the sun was beginning to set. As the sun painted the sky a beautiful mix of gold, pink and purple, they unloaded the basket, then sat back and enjoyed the view.

After the best of the show was over, they lit their wands and started a small fire to eat by. Remus had cooked again, and the food was excellent. When Holly finished, she laughed and said "You know, I'd better not let you get away. You are a terrific cook, you help me with my work, you're always doing something for me...you're really spoiling me."

"I can't help myself, I love you and I love doing things for you. As for me getting away, there's no danger of that. I could never leave you. In fact, I was asking myself a few minutes ago why I haven't put a ring on your finger yet."

"Is that a proposal?"

"No, that was thinking out loud. But this is. Holly Williams, will you marry me?"

"Yes, Remus Lupin, I will marry you."

"I don't have a ring for you right now. Even though I've been thinking of marriage for a while, I haven't gotten around to looking yet. How about we go tomorrow?"

"It's okay that you don't have a ring yet, we're just as engaged with no ring as we would be if I had a huge rock on my finger. It's the words that count. But sure, if you want, we can shop tomorrow."

He drew her close, and though she could feel him shiver from the cool dampness of her swimsuit against his bare chest, he held her and kissed her. They sat there kissing and caressing a bit for several minutes. At one point, though, she was running her hand on his chest, and she felt him wince.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?"

"A little. I forgot to tell you that those scars are tender. Those are probably self-inflicted, and werewolf scratches are cursed, so they don't heal as well as other types of injuries. They can stay tender and somewhat painful for months. Those have been there since February; I have gotten accustomed to the way they feel under my clothes, and just didn't think to mention it."

"I'm sorry...I didn't know. I'll be more careful. Was it because of my fingernail?"

"No, any pressure heavier than fabric can hurt...in fact some clothes don't feel good either. It's not really very painful, just uncomfortable. I think the fact that my skin has been exposed for so long today may have made it more sensitive. This is the first time I've been swimming in my normal form in years...so my chest hasn't seen sunlight in a long time."

"Speaking of swimming, how about we go for a dip in the moonlight?"

So they did. The water was still warm, which felt great. They swam for a while, laughing and talking as they did. Finally, Remus looked up and guessing by the position of the moon figured the time must be around 11. Neither of them had a particular time to be home, but they decided it was probably a good idea to leave. They used their wands to siphon most of the water off their suits, but they were still damp. Then they put their wraps back on, gathered up the picnic stuff and went back to Holly's house. At the door, he asked her what time she'd like to go shopping in the morning. They agreed on 11 a.m., then he kissed her goodnight and left.

When he arrived back at Grimmauld Place, no one was up. The clock on the wall in the living room read 12:30 a.m., so he decided to just go to bed. He could tell everyone of his engagement tomorrow. It seemed like a good idea to do that when Holly could be there as well. If they were lucky enough to find a ring tomorrow, she'd have something to show off to them. He was glad he'd been able to save most of his money from teaching a couple of years ago, he'd be able to buy her a nice ring. As he drifted off to sleep, his mind was still lingering on their afternoon, and how he had enjoyed holding her in his arms. He could still feel her caress on his chest...the scars had quit stinging, but he could feel the softness of her fingers as if she were still there. Then he realized there would be very few more nights in his life when he'd be sleeping alone. This was a very comforting thought to him, and the last thing that crossed his mind before he began to dream.

The next morning Holly was up by 9. She prepared a light breakfast for herself, got dressed and was ready to leave when he arrived at ten minutes to eleven. When he arrived, they apparated together to Diagon Alley . There they went to a store that sold a variety of antiques, new and old jewelry, among other things. They looked around, finally finding a ring that they both liked. It was a delicate gold band with a small diamond set between two gold roses. She tried it on, and it was a perfect fit. She liked the way it looked on her hand...she had small hands, so big stones always looked odd on her. While they were there, they also found the wedding set they wanted. It was a pair of matching gold bands, with interlocking circles engraved into the outside of the ring. Remus paid for her engagement ring, and Holly wore it out of the store. They spent another couple of hours looking around in some of the shops. Then, they got a light lunch. While they were eating, Remus said "You know, we'll never make it to get married. Sirius will kill me for not telling him about this last night."

"Maybe we can bring him a peace offering. A good book or something from the Weasley's shop might get him to spare you."

"No...I've got a better idea. I'll see if I can convince Molly to prepare his favorite meal, that should take care of it. We can get the food at the market before we leave."

They finished their meal, went to the market, then apparated back to Grimmauld Place.

Remus knocked on the door, and Hermione opened it. She saw the food, and asked Holly

"Are you staying for dinner?"

"Yes, I am. Mrs. Weasley hasn't started cooking yet, has she?"

"No, she's upstairs, cleaning one of the bedrooms."

"I'm glad I got here when I did. I've got a special meal request for her."

They went into the kitchen and put the bags on the table. Remus and Holly then went upstairs to talk to Molly. Remus spoke first.

"Molly, I have a bit of good news for you, and a favor to ask of you."

"Alright, what is it?"

"Let me give you the good news first. Holly and I are engaged."

Mrs. Weasley smiled brightly. "Oh, Remus, I'm so glad to hear that. Congratulations. You two are such a perfect couple."

"Thank you. I'm glad you think so. Please don't tell anyone else yet...we'll tell them together. That brings me to the favor. I asked her last night, so we were engaged when I came in, but I didn't wake Sirius up to tell him. I'm sure he won't be happy about that, but I think he would take it better if he had a plateful of your steak and kidney pie in front of him. We got all the ingredients at the market today. Could you make it for dinner tonight, so I can actually live to get married?"

"I'm sure Sirius wouldn't be that bad. But yes, I'll make it for dinner."

"Thank you. I really appreciate that. We'll make the announcement at dinner. For now, I need to speak to Holly privately."

They went to his bedroom and sat on the love seat by the fireplace.

Remus spoke to Holly " I wanted to talk to you privately so that you can answer this question without the influence of anyone else. I'm sure you've realized I've been deliberately avoiding allowing you to see me transform. It's something that I'm still somewhat ashamed of, but I've realized I can't hide it from you forever. Since we are going to be married, you need to see it, to know what happens. Tomorrow is the full moon. I've taken my potion all week, so I'll be safe, I'll know who you are. Only my body will change. If you'd like, you can come here and stay with me, or if you'd prefer, I can go to your house."

"I do want to see, and to do whatever I can to take care of you. I'd rather do this at my house, so I can learn to handle it myself. I'll come get you before dark, so we'll have a little time together beforehand."

"That sounds good. If we get to your house by around 4 p.m., we'll have a couple of hours."

She leaned over and gave him a hug, then said she thought she heard Sirius asking Molly about dinner.

They went downstairs, and as they reached the kitchen door, they heard Sirius say "This smells delicious, but why won't you tell me the reason you're cooking it?"

Before Molly could answer, Remus spoke up "Because I asked her not to tell you. It won't do any good to badger her or me. You'll find out when everyone else does."

Sirius gave Remus a puzzled, slightly irritated look, then sat down near the stove. Remus and Holly sat down together opposite him. Holly was very careful to keep her left hand out of sight, as that would give them away.

A little while later, Mr. Weasley and Bill arrived from work. They talked for a while about their day, giving everyone the latest information they had about Voldemort's suspected activities.

Mrs. Weasley asked Hermione and Ginny to help her set the table. As they did this, she said "I believe Remus has something he wants to tell us that will lighten the mood."

Remus and Holly stood up, then he spoke to them

"I hope this will be considered good news to everyone. Last night, I asked Holly to marry me, and she accepted. We're engaged."

Sirius spoke up "You couldn't have told me this last night?"

"Actually, no. You were asleep when I came in at 12:30 a.m. I didn't want to wake you. But most importantly, we wanted to tell you together, and we wanted to have a ring to show you. We didn't get the ring until this morning. This is why we're having you're favorite meal for dinner."

"Oh, so I'll forgive you for not telling me last night? I guess I can, but mostly because I understand your reasons. Congratulations." He walked over to Remus and hugged his old friend. "I told you someone could love you. And I said I had a feeling she was the one."

He looked at Holly, then said to her "He's cranky and more than a little stubborn sometimes. But I've been listening to him for months and I promise you he is hopelessly in love with you. As far as he's concerned there isn't another interesting woman on the planet. He would give you the moon and stars if you asked him to. You two make a great couple, and I wish you all the happiness in the world."

He gave her a hug too, and sat down.

The couple said, at the same time "Thank you Sirius".

Then they sat down. Ginny and Hermione were nearby and wanted to see the ring. Holly showed them, and everyone else who wanted to see.

Then everyone started helping themselves to dinner, and chatting about various things. Mrs. Weasley and the girls were nearest Holly, and they asked if any plans had been made yet.

Holly told them "No, not yet. It hasn't been but 24 hours. However, I did want to ask the three of you if you would help me with the plans."

The three of them all said "Yes, of course."

During the rest of dinner, they discussed a few ideas, but didn't make any decisions because Holly wanted time to think and discuss everything with Remus.

Once dinner was over, they talked a while longer, then Holly decided she needed to go home. Remus accompanied her, because he wanted to talk to her a bit more about tomorrow.

Upon their arrival at her house, Holly invited Remus in for a cup of tea. He accepted, and they went inside together. She prepared it, they sat on the couch, sipping it and talking about the plans they've made for the following day. Remus was worried that she'd be disgusted or scared by the transformation process. Holly assured him that no matter how bad it might be, she'd stay with him the whole time. He also told her it's a terribly painful process, so he's glad she doesn't have any close neighbors who might be disturbed by his howls. Holly looked at him closely, noticing the way he'd hung his head as he mentioned the noise. He was clearly embarrassed by admitting he sometimes cried out in pain.

She put her hand on his shoulder and said "Honey, I can tell you're embarrassed by this, and you feel that your screams or howls are signs of weakness. I promise you I don't see it that way. Anyone who goes through severe pain is bound to make some noise, and if they say they don't they're probably lying. The thing I want you to remember though, is that I love you, no matter what happens."

He looked up at her, a slight smile on his face. " I don't know how someone as wonderful as you can love someone like me, but I'm sure glad you do. When you talk to me like that, I feel like I can handle anything that comes along. Maybe this full moon won't be so bad."

She kissed him, then said " I can't turn into a dog and run around with you, but I bet I can keep you comfortable."

"I bet you can too."

He looked at the clock, and said he needed to go home early so he can get plenty of sleep, because he usually can't sleep much as a werewolf. So, he kissed her goodnight, then went home.

The next day was mostly uneventful. Holly made sure she had plenty of good food available, and a couple of extra blankets. She didn't know what else Remus would need, but intended to ask when they got here at 4. She arrived at Grimmauld Place at about 3:30, and visited with everyone for a few minutes. Remus got his overnight bag, then they left, arriving back at her house by 4 p.m. Once there, they sat down on the couch and she asked him a few questions. She found out that really all he required was something to eat, a warm place to lay, and somewhere to sleep when it was over. He also told her he'd taken his potion for that day as well, to further ensure he would be safe that night. Then, she realized it wasn't dark yet, so she snuggled up beside him, and he put his arm around her. They sat there cuddling until it was nearly dark. When they realized the sun was going down, he told her to raise up, that he would need some space.

A few minutes later, the sun was gone, and the moon was rising. Remus began to transform. Over a span of about 10 minutes, though it seemed like longer to her, she watched as every inch of his body changed. His limbs lengthened and became like dog's legs, his head changed into a long wolf-like head with a snout, and he sprouted a tufted tail. He did howl and cry out several times, but watching it, she had no doubt that it must have hurt. Everything about him changed shape. She cried a bit too as she watched...she wasn't scared or disgusted, she felt as if she were sharing his pain. When it was over, he gave one last lonely sounding howl, and walked over to her. He sniffed her outstretched hand, then licked it, as if trying to reassure her that he still knew her. She motioned for him to get up on the couch with her, and he did, curling up and putting his head on her leg. She stroked it, hoping that her touch would help him feel better. She knew it wouldn't relieve the pain; he'd said nothing did...it fades a little through the night, but changing back hurts too, so he's not totally rid of the pain until several hours after the sun comes up. She sat there with him for a while, talking to him and rubbing him a little. Then she thought he might be hungry, since she knew she was. She went to the kitchen and got the chicken she'd cooked earlier that day. She warmed it , made herself a salad to go with it, and brought him a couple of pieces on a plate, and some water in a big bowl. He climbed down from the couch and ate everything on the plate, then walked back over to the couch and curled back into a ball.

She finished her meal, washed the dishes, then joined him on the couch. She talked to him, thinking out loud about their wedding plans; she promised him she was just thinking, not actually deciding anything. Sometime after 3 a.m., she dozed off on the couch. About two hours later, she woke up because the sun was beginning to rise. She looked around and Remus was curled up at the other end of the sofa, watching her sleep. She raised up, told him good morning, and hugged him. He got up and stretched, wagging his tail at her to show he was okay. Within a few minutes the sun was up more, and he changed back into his normal form. The process looked a lot like it had a few hours ago, but reversed.

As soon as he was human again, he sat down on the couch, and spoke to her in a weak voice "Thank you for all you did. I felt better taken care of than I think I ever have. The food was just what I needed, but the company was the best part. I didn't realize how much difference that would make. Sirius has kept me company before, but it's not the same. I know he cares and wants to help, but you showed me a lot of attention. It even looked like you were crying when you were watching me."

"I was...it looked so painful. I wasn't scared; I knew you wouldn't hurt me. And it was not disgusting either, just eerie. I had intended to stay awake the whole time, but I just fell asleep without realizing it."

"It's okay; quite often Sirius does too. And, there have been many times when I've had no one to do anything for me on these nights. So every bit of help counts. But now, I'm very tired and a little hungry. Could I have some more chicken?"

"Sure. Just stay there, I'll bring it to you." She warms several pieces of chicken for him along with some vegetables and bread. He eats, and then starts to curl up on the couch.

She says "Why don't we both take a nap in my bed. You can stretch out all the way and be comfortable."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes...it's not as if you're gonna hurt me, and I know you won't take advantage of the situation. You're too much of a gentleman for that."

He agrees, and they go lay down on her bed for a nap, without even so much as a kiss...they're both simply far too tired to do anything but sleep.

Somewhere around noon, she wakes up. Remus is still sound asleep, so she carefully slips out of bed, and goes into the kitchen for a snack. She tiptoes around as quietly as possible for the next hour, trying not to disturb him because she knows he needs his sleep. However she is concerned when 1 p.m comes and he's not up. So, she goes in to check on him to find he's just waking up.

He stretches and yawns, then says "Good afternoon. Thanks for letting me sleep here...I feel much better."

"I'm glad you like it, that will be our bed when we're married if we decide to live here."

They spent the next several hours together, talking about the wedding. They decided to get married on Christmas Eve, the one year anniversary of their first meeting. Most everything else is left undecided. They do know who the want as attendants...for her, Hermione, Ginny and Alyssa; for him Sirius, Harry and Ron. They decide to ask the other Weasley sons to be ushers.

Since there aren't enough small children to have a ring bearer and flower girl, the decide to let Sirius carry the rings, and just skip the flowers. She'll have a bouquet, and so will her attendants, so that should be okay. Sometime around 6 p.m., they decide to go back to Grimmauld Place, so they can tell everyone what they've decided.


	7. Walking Away

Holly made a couple more attempts to contact Jane and David. Her letters were met with the same cold response they had been earlier. Three days after her engagement to Remus, she sent a letter to them and to Alyssa, informing them of the news. Alyssa wrote back within a few hours, telling her how happy she was about it.

Jane's letter arrived two days later, and was quite angry. She told Holly she ' couldn't believe you would actually marry a monster like that. But I guess we should have expected as much from you; you've always had odd tastes in men. You must be getting desperate, though, to marry him. Have you given any thought to what your children will be?'

The letter went on like that for two pages, bringing up almost every decision she had made in the last twelve years or so. The words stung Holly, but what hurt the worst was where she called Remus a monster. She held the letter in her hands and cried, tears smearing the ink in places. She had known for years their relationship would likely end over something like this, because they refused to even try to understand her. They felt that because life seemed to go smoothly for Alyssa, Holly must be the source of her own problems. She had spent many hours over the years defending decisions and explaining different parts of her life, only to be met with an attitude of 'if you tried harder, this would work out.' Finally sometime around age twenty-five, she'd just stopped telling them much about her life. The last three years, she'd only seen them a few times, usually just on the holidays.

But as she sat there, she realized she wasn't really crying as much over the end of the relationship as she was over the fact that she had no parents with whom to share the joy her engagement brought. She'd encountered this feeling a few times before, most recently when she'd finished her training to be an Auror. She was so proud, so happy over what she'd accomplished that she just wanted to scream. Alyssa had been excited when Holly had told her about it, she knew how hard Holly had worked for that. Jane and David had barely acknowledged that it was an accomplishment at all.

That day, she had done the only thing that seemed to help on these occasions. She visited her parents' graves, and her old home site. Though at the time she was nearly nineteen, she had climbed partway up her favorite old oak tree and sat for a while. The neighbor she'd sold the property to a couple of years earlier had told her to come back any time she wanted.

Tonight, though, she didn't do that; she felt it was too late an hour for that. So, she wrote two letters...one for herself and one for them. Hers was really just to get everything she felt and thought about the situation out on paper. She didn't even know if she'd keep it, but it felt good to write it out. Theirs was to let them know that since they refused to accept Remus, they would not be seeing her again. She would have nothing further to do with them. She was very careful not to make accusations or drag up the past, as they had done. When she finished it, she sent it. She knew she'd never receive a response, and that was fine with her. Later that night, as she was getting ready for bed, she received a letter from Alyssa, inviting her and Remus to meet with her for lunch the next day.

Holly accepted the invitation. Remus was a little skeptical when she told him, fearing Alyssa might be trying to "help" by inviting Jane and David as well. However, he agreed to go, to support Holly whatever may happen. Thankfully, Remus was wrong this time. Alyssa was waiting for them, alone, at the Leaky Cauldron. She just wanted to celebrate Holly's birthday and to ask if Holly wanted her to do anything.

Holly told her "No. Honestly it's a relief in a way to have them off my back. I'm sorry it has come to this, but I refuse to give up the man I love just to shut them up."

"I understand. I wouldn't do it either if I was in your place. You deserve to be happy and there's no excuse for their behavior. Personally, I'm thrilled you're getting married. I know Remus must be a wonderful man to make you gush like you did in your last few letters."

"Thanks. He is wonderful. He sometimes doesn't believe me when I say that, but he is a very kind, caring man. I've never loved anyone like I love him. But as far as Jane and David, it's their loss. I meant what I said when I told them I won't have anything else to do with them. I will visit you, if we're both welcome."

"Of course you're both welcome in my home. But enough of the bad stuff, how about we celebrate. That's what I invited you two here for."

"Sounds good to me."

"Both of you order anything you like, my treat. The food here has improved a bit recently. I think they got a new cook. Oh, and I got you a little something."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a wrapped box about the size of a hardback book.

Holly opened it, and inside was a half-dozen quills, the same number of different colored inks, and some colored parchment.

"Thanks. I still love to write, so this will be very useful."

"You're welcome. I had hoped you'd like it."

The waitress came by and took their orders. A few minutes later, their food was brought to the table. They ate, talking a little about a number of things. Shortly after they finished, Alyssa looked at her watch and realized she needed to go, this was her lunch break from work and she was due back soon.

Holly thanked her for the gift, for lunch, and told her goodbye.

She and Remus sat there a few more minutes, silently. Then he spoke up "I can tell you are still upset by your parents' reaction to our engagement. Is there anything I can do? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yes, I would like to talk about it, but I'd like to go someplace more private."

"That's fine with me. I'm with you whatever you need."

She gave his hand a squeeze. "I appreciate that. Let's go so we can really talk."

They walked outside to the courtyard behind the pub, then she told him it would be best if they apparate side-along. He took her hand, and a minute or so later, they landed in a garden. She looked around and said "It hasn't changed since I was here last."

"Where are we?"

"This is my old home site. Now it's one of Mr. Smith's gardens. He's the squib neighbor who told Dumbledore about the fire. When I was seventeen, I sold him the property. He approached me about it because he was running out of garden space. He paid me market value for it like anyone would have. I sold it to him because I'd already decided I wasn't going to live here again, and I always had thought of him as a nice man."

After a moment, she spoke again.

"The place has healed nicely...you'd never know there was a fire here, or even a house for that matter. But I see he's kept my favorite old oak tree." She walks over to one particularly large oak, with long, gracefully hanging branches. "When I was a little girl, I climbed all over this tree. The summer I was 9, I had scraped knees a lot from climbing so much. But I loved sitting on the branches watching everything that went on around me."

"That's not quite what I had pictured of you as a child. So you weren't the typical ruffles and lace, tea parties and teddy bears little girl?"

"No, ruffles and lace never have been my thing. I'm not a prim and proper lady, and I was more of a tomboy than a typical dainty little girl. I had my teddy bears, but I gave up tea parties sometime around age 5. I was more content to play outside in the trees and garden or to read than most kids my age...and I loved anything that used my imagination. I was a little mischievous , but my parents always knew how to get me to behave. They also understood the difference between a little mischief and truly bad behavior. They both had a wonderful sense of humor and let me get away with things other parents might not have tolerated. But they also taught me to think for myself, to do what was right, and not be afraid to follow my dreams. I think they would have really loved you, just for the fact that I do. That would have been all they wanted...for me to be happy."

"I'm sorry you have gone through so much loss. It's a shame your parents didn't get to see you grow up. But apparently they did a good job with the time they had with you. I know they'd have been proud of you."

She looks at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I know it may not make sense to be here, or to want to go to my parents' graves after what's happened. But I felt the need to come back to a place where I had a real family, to remember what it was like to never question if I belonged. I know Jane and David care about me, in their own way...but there's so much they don't understand. When I was younger, we got along fine, but as my life has gone a different way than they expected, we've grown apart. I'm more like an acquaintance or casual friend to them now than someone they once treated as their daughter."

"I think I understand your reasoning. You have some happy memories here, and you feel a connection to this place. It's a source of comfort to you to be able to come here and reflect. As for Jane and David, it's their loss since they have pushed you away. They'll lose touch with a wonderful woman that they really should be quite proud of."

She hugged him and thanked him for his kind words "I'd like to think my real parents **would** have been proud of me. I believe they could have related to my professions better than the Thomsons do. My dad was in law enforcement; my mom was a school teacher. The summer they found out I was a witch, they read everything they could find about our world...they went shopping with me for my school books and were amazed at everything they saw in Diagon Alley. They were as fascinated with it all as I was; I think they'd have liked to go to school with me if they could have. Jane and David, on the other hand, never quite "got it". They understand owl post, they have seen our school books, but they never bothered to open one. They learned just enough to be able to keep in touch with us, but were content to let the school handle us. Since graduation, my job choice and my social life have been a source of conflict. They don't understand what an Auror does, and they couldn't see why I couldn't just "work out" my disagreements with the Minister...I think they thought of him as my boss, not as the same as the Prime Minister. So I quit talking to them about work. But that only really left my social life, and they couldn't see why I didn't settle down with any of the guys I dated. They didn't realize that those guys were just after my money. But I could list a lot of things over they years that have caused disagreements. None of it is really important anymore. The letter was the last straw...I'm done being made to feel inferior or unacceptable. Now, let's go to the cemetery."

"Okay" They apparated together to the cemetery, and she sat down on a bench at the foot of their graves. Remus spoke "I don't really know what to say to comfort you, but I am here to listen as long as you want to talk."

"Thanks. An ear is really all I need. There's nothing that can be changed...the past is over, and nothing is going to change my mind about them now."

He sat down beside her "This is a pretty spot. Did you choose this area?"

"Yeah, I did. I love this big tree...it reminds me of the one at our home."

Several long minutes passed in silence, during which Holly seemed to be collecting herself. She conjured a bouquet of flowers, placed them in the vase on the headstone, and stood there for a few minutes. Remus stood a respectful distance away from her, until she beckoned him. He walked to her, she put her arm around him. She whispered something which he didn't fully hear, but guessed wasn't really for his ears anyway. Then she hugged him and said "I'm ready to go on our date, but let's go to my house first so I can clean up."

When they arrived at her house, it's 4:30 p.m.; they had passed almost three hours since Alyssa had left them at the Leaky Cauldron. Remus had planned a quiet dinner and dancing to celebrate her birthday. They sat on the couch and talked for a while, since they didn't plan to have dinner until 6:30 p.m.

He asked her "Are absolutely sure you still want to marry me, knowing how they feel? I don't want to cause you any pain."

" I definitely want to marry you. I have no regrets at all. Remus, I am totally and completely in love with you. I've never felt as happy or as whole as I do when I'm with you. When we're together, when you hold me, the whole world disappears...nothing else matters. I'm not giving that up for anybody, especially not two people who have done little more than make me feel inferior for the last decade. As for pain, it's not you, it's them. But I'm not really that hurt over it. Talking it out with Alyssa, and you helped a lot. You especially showed me I have no reason to feel inferior; you soothed the little bit of hurt the letter had inflicted."

"I just needed to be sure of what you wanted. I feel the same way about you. I haven't felt this way in a very long time, and then it was because Lily had helped me through a really rough spot. She was a very caring friend who, like you, was able to make me feel human instead of like a monster. She really cared about me as a person. She would have been so thrilled to know I've finally fallen in love, that I've finally met someone who is healing me. Your presence in my life is like a balm to all the shame I've let wound my soul and heart over the years."

She reached over and hugged him, then said "Who'd have thought two people so wounded could heal each other?"

"Not me. I'm glad we found each other."

"Me too. Now, I guess I need to go freshen up a bit. I've cried just enough to make my face red. This shouldn't take too long."

She went into the bathroom, washed her face, then applied fresh makeup. She brushed her hair, then decided she was ready.

By this time it was 6:00 p.m., so they left for the restaurant.

They had decided to go back to the nightclub they had visited in Diagon Alley during the spring. They had both enjoyed themselves and were looking forward to going dancing again.

They arrived a few minutes after 6:00 p.m., and once they got in, Holly spotted a good table near the stage. They sat talking for a while, then were able to place their dinner orders. The meal was as good as it had been the last time, and after a few more minutes' conversation, Holly was ready to dance.

Before they did, though, Remus touched her hand and said "Wait. I have something for you, and I want you to open it."

He handed her a small slender box. She opened it, revealing a delicate gold locket on a thin chain.

"Thank you. This is beautiful. I know exactly which photo I want in it."

She asked him to help her put it on, and he did. She hugged him, then led him out on the dance floor. Quite a few dances later, they realized it was 10 p.m., so they left. Since it was so close to the beginning of the school year, Holly was trying to keep better hours so she got enough sleep.

When they arrived on her doorstep, Holly invited Remus inside. He declined, saying he wanted to go to bed early that night too. She thanked him again for the locket, and for being there for her through everything that day. Then she kissed him goodnight. As they broke from their kiss, he whispered "Happy Birthday, sweetheart." Then he left for home.

The next couple of weeks were busy for Holly. She was putting the finishing touches on her lesson plans for the year. She wasn't making a lot of changes, but there would be some differences, and she wanted everything to be ready a few days before the start of term.

She spent some time with Remus during those weeks, but not much. About three days before she had to leave, they spent an afternoon at her house. They talked about their wedding, and made a few plans. They decided on their colors; blue and white. The guys' outfits would be dark blue, the girls' would be light blue.

That afternoon, Holly also told Remus she would ask about any different quarters for married couples. She asked him if, in the meantime, he would keep an eye on her house.

" I'd just like you to come here a couple of times a month to see that everything's okay. Of course, if you'd like to stay here, even move in, you can, I don't mind."

"Moving in here before we're married would seem weird to me. This is your home, and it won't feel like mine until we stay here together a while. I guess that makes me odd, but it's just how I feel. I don't mind coming here to check on the place from time to time."

"That's good. It does have a mechanical lock, so I'll give you my spare key. What you said doesn't seem weird, it shows me that you have a lot of respect for me. It's the same thing as when you hesitated about sharing a bed with me after you'd transformed. The only reason you did that was because we both knew you were too tired to do anything but sleep. I understand your feelings; the only reason I offered is because I trust you and I love you."

She gave him her spare key and explained the few security charms that were on the house. They cooked dinner together, which they both enjoyed.

On August thirtieth, Holly left home and reported to the castle to get ready for the beginning of the school year.


	8. Winter Wedding, Summer Honeymoon

Her first week of school this year was as busy as it had been last September, but she was not as nervous. She was glad to see a lot of familiar faces among her older students. The third years, of course, were all new students, but most seemed interested in the class. The fact that Professor Umbridge was not there criticizing everything was a relief to the entire staff. There was another change in staffing this year; Professor Snape had been appointed to the Defense Against the Dark Arts class, and Professor Horace Slughorn had been hired to fill the Potions position.

For Holly on a personal level, the best part of life was that Remus was able to visit her often. They saw each other one day of every weekend, more if her work allowed.

On the evening of the last Friday of September, Remus contacted her by floo network to let her know he'd checked on her house.

"Everything's fine. A few of the vegetables in the garden had ripened, so I got them and brought them to Grimmauld Place. I thought I'd use them in tomorrow's dinner."

"That's fine. I'd hoped if anything was ripe, you would get it and use it. I don't imagine there will be much more come in, but use it even if it's not gonna be for me."

"Okay. Mrs. Weasley likes to use fresh vegetables, so she'll be glad to hear that. So we are

still on for tomorrow night, then?"

"Absolutely. But I will need to spend Sunday grading essays."

" I understand, you do have to work. In fact it looks like that's what you were doing. Do I need to let you get back to it?"

"You're right, I am grading papers. Even though I'd love to sit here and talk to you all night, I do need to make some more headway or I won't be able to meet you tomorrow."

"Okay. Goodbye, sweetheart."

"Bye honey."

The next day they met for dinner at Grimmauld Place. Remus had prepared a meal for everyone there. He had cooked a pot roast that was perfectly seasoned and tender with some tiny new potatoes and carrots around it. He'd also made a crusty bread and crisp garden salad using the last of the greens and tomatoes from her garden. For dessert there was a cheesecake with cherries on top.

As she ate, Holly was again impressed with Remus' cooking skills. She knew she was going to get quite spoiled if he cooked often. By the time she'd eaten some of everything, she was stuffed; but it was the best meal she'd had this week. The Hogwarts house elves were good cooks, but nothing compared to what he could do.

When they finished eating, Remus cleared the table, then the two of them went into the den. They sat on the love seat and snuggled while they talked about wedding plans. Holly reminded herself aloud of what was left to do.

"We need to get the invitations out, decide on flowers, think of who we can get to perform the ceremony and decide where we're going to have it."

"If possible, I'd like Professor Dumbledore to perform the ceremony. He's always been so kind to me that it would be an honor if he could do it."

" I agree with you. He was almost like a father to me right after my parents died. He took care of things for me, but he also did all he could to help me deal with the loss. He was responsible for suggesting that I talk to any of the teachers at any hour if I needed, and ensuring that it would not negatively affect my schoolwork. As the years went by, he helped me make decisions about my inheritance and the property. He never told me I had to do it his way, he just gave me information and helped me decide. He became someone I trust a lot. I hope he can do this for us too."

"As for the location, since it's a winter wedding, and will be small, maybe we could use the Great Hall. It's big when the house tables are removed, and it could be decorated easily."

"Yeah, and it has the enchanted ceiling. I like that idea too If we time it right, the reception would be after dark, so we would be dancing under the stars.. For the flowers, I was thinking of blue lilies and white roses- I think that would look good with the colors we picked."

"I do too. Invitations shouldn't be a problem. Our guest list is small, so we could probably write them out in a day if we both work at it."

"It would easily fit in a day. I was planning on getting some pretty parchment with a simple design on it from Scrivenshaft's. I can do that tonight if I have time, or when I take a break tomorrow. Then we can either get together one day during the week or wait until next weekend."

"Whichever way is easiest for you. Just let me know what you need me to do."

"There is one other thing I want to ask you about. How do you feel about me walking down the aisle alone, and having two empty chairs where my parents would have sat for me to place a flower on?"

"I think that would be a beautiful gesture, and I like it. As for walking down the aisle alone, it's appropriate and if that's what you want, it's okay with me. Or, if there's someone you want to stand in for your dad, that's okay too."

"There's no one that could fill his place. There's nobody I see as a father figure anymore, except Dumbledore, and I'd rather have him perform the ceremony."

"That's fine with me."

They sat for a while longer, just enjoying being together. After a while, Holly looked up at the clock, and it was nearly 10 p.m. Even though that was not as late as she'd been known to stay with Remus, she knew she had a busy day tomorrow. So, she gave him a long goodnight kiss, then used the fireplace to return to the castle.

October comes in clear, cool, and with splashes of orange, red, and gold as the leaves change. By mid-month, there's another color added to the palette Holly sees most days- blue. She and Remus sent out 50 invitations, and responses started coming in within a few days. In with the flurry of mail, Holly received two good pieces of news, both from Alyssa.

First, she asked Holly if she and Remus would like to use her beach house in Australia for their honeymoon. Alyssa figured they might like the fact that it's summer there, and the house is situated on a secluded stretch of beach. A few days before Halloween, she wrote to tell Holly that the baby had been born. It was a girl, Stephanie Ann, born October twenty-fifth, weighed seven pounds, six ounces, and was twenty inches long.

One Monday in early November, Professor Dumbledore came to Holly's office during her break between classes.

"I've been meaning to talk to you for the last few days. I wanted to let you know that I will be able to perform the wedding ceremony for you and Remus. Also, you can use the Great Hall for the ceremony and reception."

"Thank you sir. I know I speak for both of us when I say I'm very pleased to have you do this. We've both always thought very highly of you; you helped each of us through some difficult times in our lives. As for the Great Hall, I appreciate that as well. It will be just the right size, and if Hermione and Ginny come up with a good decorating scheme, it will really be beautiful."

"I'm glad to know I could be of help. I'd also like to say, as your friend, that I am very glad to see the two of you getting married. I think you make a good couple and I wish you the best of luck for the future."

"Thank you, Professor. I'll pass your sentiments along to Remus when I talk to him again."

"I'll let you get back to your work, then. Have a good day."

"You too."

After her classes were over Friday, she left the castle and spent the evening with Remus. She told him about Dumbledore's acceptance of their requests, and that he had congratulated them. This evening, they checked the invitation list against the responses they'd received. Everyone they invited had accepted.

As they sat down to dinner, Holly realized they had not made any decisions about the food. They were seated a little apart from everyone else, so Holly whispered to Remus

"Do you think Mrs. Weasley would be willing to prepare the wedding cake and a few items for a small buffet?"

"I bet she would. She loves to cook, and we haven't asked her to do anything yet."

"Okay, I'll ask her."

In a normal voice, Holly addressed Mrs. Weasley

"Mrs. Weasley, would you be willing to bake our wedding cake, and prepare a few items for a small buffet? I know it's short notice, but I didn't even think about it until today."

"Of course I'll do that for you. I'm honored that you asked me. It's not really short notice, I've got over a month. We can discuss in more detail what you want after dinner."

"I couldn't think of anyone who cooks as well as you do. Thank you for accepting. I will discuss the details with you after dinner. Don't worry, it won't be a lot."

Once they had finished eating, Remus and the two women gathered at one end of the dining table. Holly explained that for the buffet, she would leave it to Mrs. Weasley to cook whatever she felt everyone would like. After all, she knew most of the guests, so she could pick some appetizers she would normally prepare for a gathering.

"As for the cake, I want a three layer round chocolate cake. I'd like white frosting with blue roses on it. The top can be a bouquet of roses like the ones on the rest of the cake."

"That will be easy, then. Are you sure three layers will be enough?"

"I'm fairly sure. We only invited fifty people, so I think that will take care of it. If I change my mind, I'll let you know several days ahead."

Settling that issue finished all of the planning except the decorations. The clothes had already been chosen and were being altered. The seamstress had notified Holly earlier in the week that she was done with over half of the work. She anticipated being finished in about ten more days. The flowers had also been ordered and the arrangements would be ready to pick up the day before the wedding.

Remus and Holly spent the rest of the evening talking and listening to the wireless that was playing in the den. Holly asked him "Have you decided for sure if you want to live at my house after we're married?"

"Yes, I have decided. I do want us to live there. I've spent a good bit of time there since we've been together, and I really like the place. The times I've gone to check on it, I found myself spending several hours there. I think it will suit us just perfectly."

"I had hoped you would. The place just has a way of growing on you. I also wanted to let you know I found out from Professor Dumbledore that once we're married, I can go home every evening, unless there's an emergency. If something happens after I leave, they'll contact me to come back."

"That will be wonderful. We'll be able to be together a lot more than I had thought we would."

"As much as I'd like to stay here, I need to get back to the castle. I've got a lot to do tomorrow."

They kissed goodnight, and Holly left.

December brought with it ferocious wind and heavy snow. But for Remus and Holly, it also brings the increased excitement of the approach of their wedding. School is out for the holidays from the second week of December to the second week of January.

Everything was ready for the wedding by the start of the holidays, except the decorating scheme. The girls had drawn it out, they just didn't have time to present it to Holly until vacation. The first day of break, after classes were over, the two girls came into her classroom with a big roll of parchment.

Ginny spoke first "Professor Williams, this is the plan for the decorations for the wedding. I hope you will like it. The drawings probably don't completely capture it, but it should give you a good idea of what we want to do."

"I'm sure it will. Let's put a couple of these desks together so we'll have enough room to spread it out."

Once they had the parchment unrolled and weighted down, Hermione began explaining the drawings.

"We got the idea from the way the Great Hall was decorated for the Yule Ball a couple of years ago. It's too bad you didn't see it, that would have helped you visualize this better."

Ginny continued "It was really beautiful the way they had it done. I've got a few pictures here you can look at, but it's not much. The whole room was decorated in a way that made you feel you were in an ice cave. The tables, walls, and floor all looked as if they were carved from ice. With that idea in mind, we thought we'd do almost the same thing. We also thought instead of the usual floating candles, we'd use ice crystals lit from inside."

"The tables would be draped with blue linens, some dark, some light, and pale silver runners. A small vase of flowers would be at each table. We thought either white or crystal dinnerware would look best. The archway would also look like ice- clear with a blue tint in this case, and of course flowers woven into it." Hermione explained.

"We thought since you're having both the ceremony and the reception there, the back of the hall would be tables and chairs; the front would be rows of chairs split by an aisle, like you usually see. The aisle itself will be a shimmery dark blue carpet. We've also got an ice sculpture in mind, but we're not going to tell you what it will look like, because that's a surprise. And we've got a band; it's not the Weird Sisters, but they are good."

Holly had been listening and looking at the parchment and pictures. "This looks wonderful. You've really done a great job. Who will actually execute the work?"

Ginny answered "We'll do some of it, but Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Flitwick have all agreed to do the things we don't know how to do."

"Great. I know it will turn out perfectly. We'll show this to Remus at dinner tonight. I'm sure he'll love it. If he does, then you can carry it out."

"Okay. We'll leave the parchment and photos with you, then."

"That's good. I'll see you later."

The two girls left, seemingly excited about her reaction to their plans. If it all went as well as they had explained, it would be a truly spectacular sight.

That evening, she showed the plans to Remus, who liked them as much as she did.

On Friday, it was the full moon, so Remus would go through his monthly transformation. Even though he dreaded it, he admitted the timing was good. As she had most months since their engagement, Holly spent the day with him.

He told her "I'd rather it happen now than closer to the wedding or during our honeymoon."

"I agree. This way, you'll have time to get your strength back before wedding."

He grinned playfully " I have a feeling I'm gonna need it."

"You better believe it."

Like several times before, they had gone to her house ahead of time. According to Remus, Holly was getting quite good at taking care of him. She always made sure he had plenty of good food to eat, but he was especially grateful for her company. Sirius had provided for him until Holly stepped in, and Remus said he'd done a good job.

But he had gotten spoiled very easily to curling up with Holly, even cuddling with her sometimes. He had told her that her presence helped keep him calm during those long hours.

As before, she spent most of the night on the sofa with him, talking to him a lot. When the sun came up and he returned to normal, they both went to bed, exhausted as usual.

On the twenty-third, Hermione, Ginny and Alyssa gave Holly a bachelorette party. The party was rather tame by some standards, but it suited Holly just fine. They each had brought a small gift. They had decided together to each buy her a piece of lingerie. All three girls were familiar enough with the muggle world to be comfortable shopping in London, so they had gone together one afternoon.

Alyssa had bought a simple white satin teddy with pink roses silk screened on it. Hermione had chosen a blue lace tank top and matching bikinis; Ginny bought a short pink silk nightgown, trimmed with white lace.

Holly thanked them for the gifts, and gave them each the gifts she had chosen for them as a thank you for serving in the wedding. She had picked up a gold necklace with a pearl in a little heart-shaped cage for each of them.

They spent the rest of the evening sipping butterbeers and talking. They chose that drink because they didn't want to be groggy or hung over the next morning.

Christmas Eve morning dawned clear and cold, with a layer of new snow on the castle grounds.

Holly was the first one up, and spend about half an hour looking out the window over the grounds. She know from experience that from the outside, the castle looked like something out of a Christmas movie.

Around 10 a.m., the other girls got up. She had just made coffee, so she poured some for each of them. Then she turned on the wireless so they could listen to some Christmas music. They had a light breakfast, then dressed and went downstairs.

When they got there, the decorating was underway. It was not nearly finished, but since the wedding wouldn't start until 4 p.m. it was okay. Holly wanted to help, but was shooed away by the girls. So, she and Alyssa went back to her quarters.

For the next several hours, they talked. It was the first time in a couple of years that they had the chance to spend such a large chunk of time together. They both enjoyed the chance to catch up.

Holly asked "Where are the kids?"

"At home with Steven. They'll be coming around 3 p.m. because I figured you would want to spend a little time with them before the wedding."

"I had hoped you would think of that, because I do. Mark is such a sweet little boy, and I haven't even seen Stephanie yet. She's only a bit over a month old."

"This is the first time I've been away from her overnight. But I know Steven is more than capable of taking care of them both. Speaking of kids, and I'm not saying this to make you mad, but you know mom told me she's ' figured out' that you must be marrying Remus because you're pregnant. I almost laughed in her face when she said that."

"It doesn't really make me mad anymore. It just disappoints me to know she really thinks there's got to be some reason than the obvious truth, that I simply love him. That's sad, to be so completely unable to accept the truth. What's worse for them is they've not only lost me, but the chance of getting to know Remus, who would be a wonderful son in law to them. As far as kids, we do want them, but we haven't had sex. I guess they didn't realize I'm still a virgin...that's one of the reasons I broke up with some of the guys I dated so briefly. A few of them couldn't understand the concept of waiting."

"Sadly, they don't seem to figure out a lot of things about you. They thought things should just fall into place for you like they did for me. The don't realize I was just lucky. I fell madly in love with the first guy I seriously dated after graduation, and I married him."

"Yes you were very lucky. I guess I have been picky...but I just didn't meet the right guy until Remus. I don't regret the choices I made, though. I enjoyed my career as an Auror, and I know I wouldn't have been truly happy with any other man. Even though it sounds mean to say it, I don't regret breaking ties with them. I've got enough stress in my life without having them on my back. But, enough of that. Today is a very special day for me, and I'm happy. I don't want to think about anything but good stuff. So, how have things been for you? We haven't really talked in a long time."

"Life's been good. Steven and I have both gotten promotions at work, and we're both enjoying our jobs. We help train new Healers. Actually, I've resigned my position until Stephanie is three or four years old, when I can enroll her in preschool. I know there are daycare centers for younger kids, but I just want to be with her these first few years. Mark is doing well in school; we send him to a muggle elementary school near our home. I guess maybe it seem silly to put my kids in school with muggles, but I want them to be with other kids, and to learn how other people live. He's looking forward to going to Hogwarts, even though it's four years away. He's already begun having little accidents from time to time, so we'll likely home school him next year. We've already told him we will do this, and he's actually not worried about it. I promised him he could still stay in touch with his friends, that teaching him at home was just to get him ready for Hogwarts. I also told him it was so that he wouldn't have to explain any of the little slips that happen to his teachers. He's handled it all very well, but we've tried to treat his magical ability as a gift, not something to be ashamed of, and it seems to have worked."

"I'm glad you've been able to help him see it that way. So many of my pureblood students have been raised not knowing anything about muggles, and in some cases they have been raised thinking they're better than muggles. A fair number of my muggleborn students encountered all kinds of problems when their talents started showing...several have commented about being taken to doctors to make sure nothing was 'wrong' with them. I know the staff at Hogwarts usually tries to stay in touch with the parents of these kids when they're young, but sometimes they aren't able to do so. I'm glad you're exposing them to muggles, it will be beneficial to them later. As for me, I haven't decided how I'm going to handle it when I have children. Unless something changes, Remus likely won't be able to work. Very few people will hire a werewolf. If that remains the case, then he'll stay home with the kids and I'll work. But I could be quite happy with that, I love my job, and I know he'll be good with kids. It's not as if I'd never see them, I just would not be with them during the day. Did I tell you he's also a great cook? You've got to come eat with us sometime. Nothing Jane cooked was ever close to what he can do. You should have seen what he made for our first date."

"You told me you went on a picnic by the lake."

"Yes, but when was the last time you had a picnic that consisted of steak, roasted potatoes, rolls, red wine and chocolate dipped strawberries? And it was all perfectly prepared."

"Wow. Usually a picnic means hamburgers or chicken, potato salad, and maybe cookies or a cake. You're going to get spoiled."

"I already am. He's cooked for me like that several times since we met, each time as good or better than the last."

"So tell me more about him. You've said a little, but not much."

"Well we met over the Christmas holidays last year...exactly a year ago today, at a meeting of the Order of the Phoenix. I told you about them already. He was in school with us; you probably remember that. He was bitten when he was about six years old, and has spent most of his life ashamed of what he is. He had a few friends at Hogwarts, but due to a series of circumstances, he was alone for a long time after James and Lily Potter's death. As a result of this, in my opinion, he shut himself off from the world. He didn't get close to anybody, and the shame he felt caused him to believe no one could love him. Three years ago, while he was working as a teacher at Hogwarts, his friend Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban. Sirius is innocent of the crime he was accused of, but that's another story. He was eventually able to return to his home, and he let Remus move in with him. This was a lot of help to Remus, because it not only gave him a place to live, but someone he was close to for company. Then, a year later, the Order of the Phoenix re-formed, and it gave him work to do again. When I met him last year, I was immediately reminded of how crazy I'd always been about him. The more time we spent together, the more I realized I loved him. Under that layer of shame that made him keep his distance is a wonderful, caring, sensitive, kind man. It took him a while to realize and admit to himself that he was in love with me, but once he did, he became steadily more affectionate and more comfortable showing it."

"He sounds like a perfect fit for you. I'm glad you two found each other and I'm happy to have him as my brother in law. I find it interesting that you met the man you'd marry when you were only eleven years old."

"That is sort of a funny part of our story. Who'd have guessed that a teenage crush would turn into real love, twenty years later? I had long since put any thoughts of him aside, but when I saw him a year ago, it was like the first time all over again. That night, we apparated to Hogsmeade, and we did it side along so we'd land closer together. When I took his hand, I got this little tingle, and I couldn't get him or it out of my mind for days. I spent nearly every evening of the holidays with him."

"So, it was love at first sight, then?"

"Not quite. I knew I was still attracted to him, but I thought it might be just physical, and because we'd spent a lot of time talking about our school years. I didn't realize how deeply I cared for him until he was gone for two months. He went on a mission for the Order and was totally cut off from me from January until mid-March. That was the longest two months I've ever had. When he got back, he sent me a letter. I was so glad just to know he was alive. The minute I was able to leave school, I went to see him. He spoke to the Order that night to give his report, and he looked so tired. He'd been with other werewolves all that time, and without his potion, so he went through three full transformations, since he'd left just before the full moon in January and came back just after it in March. He had cuts and scratches all over his neck and arms. When I watched him, though, what stood out was how sad he seemed. It broke my heart to see him so hurt. I talked to him for a while afterwards and had to fight to myself to keep from hugging him. That night confirmed for me what I'd suspected for weeks- I was head over heels in love."

"How did he handle being away from you?"

"I found out, about a month and a half later, that I was the only happy thing he had to think about. He remembered the time we'd spent together and that made it easier. He really missed me, but didn't admit until late April that he was in love with me. Sirius had a lot to do with that...they had a couple of long conversations that made him acknowledge his feelings. After that, we started dating, and the rest you know."

"Since I'm your sister and can get away with asking you questions like this, I'm going to. You said you haven't had sex, but you've been affectionate, so I'm guessing you've kissed?"

"Oh, yeah. We kissed three times on our first date. For a guy who's only had a couple of girlfriends, he sure knows what he's doing. We've spent a **lot** of time cuddling, and have slept in bed together several times after his transformation. I've taken care of him almost every month since August. He's always so exhausted when he goes back to normal that he'll sleep about eight hours straight, even though it's in the morning. The first time I took care of him was at my house, and he's such a gentleman, he was going to sleep on the couch. But I insisted he sleep with me on my bed. I knew he just needed to rest, and told him so. Early in our relationship, he was shy about kissing me around other people, but now, we do it all the time. He even holds me on his lap sometimes, which I love.

"I like that too. When I was pregnant, though, that didn't work out so well. Now, we've gotten back to our normal relationship."

Just then, Ginny and Hermione walked in . Ginny announced "Everything is finished, except laying out the food. Mom will do that when she gets here."

Hermione commented "It all looks beautiful, much better than it did on paper. Do you want to go see it?"

Holly replied "Of course. Let's go."

They all went downstairs to the Great Hall. Hermione was right, it was truly beautiful. Mere words could not do it justice. The room looked like it had been carved from ice. Everything glittered and sparkled as if the sun were actually shining on it. As she made her way around the room, she was impressed with the girls' attention to detail. Everything was done exactly the way she'd have done it herself. When she reached the buffet table, she found the ice sculpture. It was a sculpture of herself and Remus embracing.

Hermione asked "What do you think of it?"

"It's perfect. I love it."

"Ginny managed to get a photo of you the night you announced your engagement. She showed it to me and I thought it would make a good sculpture. We can't take credit for actually carving it, though. Professor Flitwick did that."

"He did a great job. So did the two of you with your designs. I couldn't have done better myself."

They spent a while longer walking around, the girls showing her different things and telling her which of them had come up with the idea. From someone else, it might have sounded like bragging, but she knew from them it was just enthusiasm.

Then they all went back upstairs to get ready. Holly had chosen simple dresses for them all. They had also agreed on simple hairstyles and makeup as well. Before Holly gets changed, there's a voice at the door. It's Alyssa's husband and their children. He had come by floo network to the Great Hall so he wouldn't walk in on them undressing. He asked if someone will let them in, and Alyssa does.

Mark gives his mom a big hug, then runs over to Holly and hugs her. Even though they haven't spent as much time together as Holly would like, he is an affectionate child who loves hugs. He always greets Holly with a big hug. They visit for a while, and since Alyssa finished dressing quickly, she entertains them in the living room while Holly and the others get dressed.

By 3:15 p.m., everyone was ready, so they went downstairs. They used a little room just outside the Great Hall as a gathering area before the ceremony. Hermione looked into the Hall and saw that most of the seats were full. At 3:55, the music started and they filed out. As she walked down the aisle, Holly is pleased to see everyone she invited is there. These people are her family, not by blood, but by choice. Every one of them has helped either Remus or herself in some way. She looked to the front of the room, and her eyes lit on Remus. He looked gorgeous in his new robes, but he had the biggest smile she'd ever seen on his face. He couldn't look happier and be standing still. She suspected she looked very happy too, because she was so thrilled she didn't even think her feet were touching the floor.

She reached the end of the aisle, turned to her left, and placed a single white rose on each of the two empty chairs. She took a couple more steps, then Remus walked to her, took her arm in his, and they walked to their place in front of Professor Dumbledore.

Then they read they vows they had written. Remus read first

"On this special day, I give to you in the presence of these witnesses,

My promise to stay by your side,

In sickness and in health,

In joy and in sorrow, through good times and bad.

I promise to love you without reservation,

Comfort you in times of distress,

Encourage you to achieve all of your goals,

Laugh with you and cry with you,

Grow with you in mind and spirit,

Always be open and honest with you,

And Cherish you for as long as we both shall live."

Holly then read the same vows back to him.

Professor Dumbledore asked that Remus place the ring on Holly's finger, then Holly places the ring on Remus' finger.

Professor Dumbledore then spoke " The rings you have exchanged are a tangible symbol of the promises you've just made to each other. May they remind you of the permanence of your love for each other. I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

They kissed, then turned around to face the guests. Professor Dumbledore announces

"I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Remus John Lupin."

The music started, and they filed out to the entrance hall, then back in for the reception. Several people there took pictures, which took almost an hour. Finally everyone is finished, the band starts, and they dance. Professor Dumbledore and McGonagall discreetly sent the rows of chairs out of the way to open up more room for the dance floor.

As they danced, Holly was so happy she felt giddy. She rested her head on Remus' shoulder and whispered "I love you".

"I love you too, sweetheart."

By now, the Hall really showed off the girls' work. The sun had set, and the ceiling was reflecting the velvet black sky, dotted with millions of stars. The light provided by the ice crystal candles made everything sparkle.

The evening was made even more perfect by Mrs. Weasley's food. The cake looked beautiful, and tasted even better. The buffet setting was simple, but provided a little something for everyone. There were finger sandwiches, sausages, fruit, cookies, and punch.

Ginny and Hermione had made a wise choice with the band they booked. The group played some soft, slow music, as well as some upbeat, faster tunes. Holly noticed they had paired off with the guys- Ginny was dancing with Harry, Hermione was with Ron. Alyssa danced with Steven, having asked Mrs. Weasley to watch the kids for a few minutes. Sirius took turns with several girls, but danced with Holly right after her first dance with Remus.

The reception lasted until about 8:30 p.m. By this time, most of the food was gone, and the couple was ready to leave. Sirius and Bill Weasley got their luggage from the room off the Hall. Holly and Remus then left by floo network.

A few minutes later, they arrived in Australia, inside a beautifully decorated beach house. It's small, but comfortable, with a living room, full kitchen, two bedrooms, and a big bathroom. They looked out the window and realized it was a very short walk to the beach.

They put their luggage in the larger of the two bedrooms and changed into their swimsuits.

It was a beautiful morning outside, and they were anxious to get out in the sun. After the cold weather they started the day with, they knew it would feel good.

When Remus walked out of the bathroom where he'd gone to change he was wearing a dark blue pair of swim trunks and a light blue Hawaiian shirt. Holly had just finished tying the last strings on her bikini bottom. She loved this suit because its color nearly matched her hair, but she was not fond of the fact that it had so many ties. There was one on each hip, then a front and back one on the top. However, Remus' appreciative whistle told her she'd chosen the right suit.

He grabbed a blanket and his wand, ant they went to the beach. They spread the blanket out, he took off his shirt, and they went into the water. They swam and splashed, enjoying the warmth of the water, and the fact that they were totally alone on the beach.

After a couple of hours, they went back to the blanket to sunbathe and talk. She puts her head on his chest, and after a few minutes, she turns and faces him, caressing him carefully on the chest. He puts his arm around her, then rolls onto his side and kisses her deeply. He looks down into those bright amber eyes "tiger's eyes" she'd called them when he complimented her on their color one day. Since then, he'd thought of them that way, and of how well that description fit her. As she lay there, her sinewy body stretched out beside him, he could for the first time appreciate how catlike she really was. Like a tiger, she was beautiful...slender and graceful; seemingly very gentle and tame, yet at the same time muscular and powerful.

He pulled away for a second, but her eyes called him to kiss her again. He did, enjoying the familiar sweetness of it. His hands explored her body, stopping just long enough to untie the strings of her swimsuit. He pulled the damp, clingy fabric away, and caressed the curves offered him by the newly exposed skin. He could feel her body tremble slightly as he moved his hand along her stomach. His fingers lightly traced her navel, then followed a line of down-soft hairs to the nest of copper curls that had been covered by her bikini bottom. As he did this, a small moan escaped her lips. He let his caress continue downward along the soft sensitive skin of her inner thigh. Her leg moved aside, allowing him access. He placed his free hand on the other side of her. Their upper bodies in direct contact, he could feel the warmth of her breath as he lowered his weight onto her hips. She whispered, then moaned his name against his skin. The sound of pure pleasure in her voice fueled his desire for her. He could feel her body tense beneath him, her hands clutching his back, nails digging in slightly. He could hear the soft gasps she made as their passion reached its peak. She reached up, her fingers toying with the damp strands of hair on the back of his neck. Her eyes locked with his, and there was no need for words; the satisfied smile on her face was all he needed. He kissed her lightly, then stretched out beside her. They lay there, lingering in the moment for quite a while. Then they gathered their things and went inside to sleep.

The afternoon is warm and beautiful. They linger in bed for a while after awakening, simply to enjoy being together. Some time around 1p.m, they actually get out of bed, have brunch, and talk about what to do with the day. They decide to explore the area around the house more to see what's nearby. They dress and leave, then after a short walk, find a small muggle community . They spend some time looking around, then head back to the beach house. They change into their swimsuits, then go out on the beach. Their idea is to build a sand castle, but somewhere along the way, plans change and they end up in the bedroom.

This is how their honeymoon is spent-exploring...exploring their surroundings and exploring each other. At the end of the week, they return to England, totally happy and relaxed.


	9. Settling In

Upon her return from her honeymoon, Holly still had five days before the students returned to school. She had already moved her few personal possessions from the castle back home. However, Remus had decided to wait until they came back to move in. After spending a few hours telling everyone about their honeymoon and handing out gifts, they decided to pack his things. By dinner, they were finished. They ate with Sirius and the Weasleys, then went to their new home.

When they arrived, Holly made them some hot cocoa. They sat down, and Holly looked over at his trunks; she asked "Are you sure you got everything?"

"I'm pretty sure I did. After living there for nearly three years, I can't be totally certain nothing got misplaced."

"At least if anything does turn up missing, you'll know where to look."

"Yes, and I'm sure if Sirius finds anything of mine, he'll make sure I get it back. You know, after all he's done for me, I need to thank him somehow, other than just saying it. But what do you get for someone who's got everything he wants?"

"That is a difficult question...he's got enough money to buy anything he wants. The only things he doesn't have are the freedom to really move about in public, and someone to love. Money can't buy either. Maybe we'll think of something, though."

"An invitation to dinner here a few times would be something he'd like. He could come here by floo network without worrying and it would give him a chance to get out of that house."

"That sounds good. If we think of something else he'd like, we can do that too."

After they'd finished their cocoa, they decided to unpack his things. They levitated the trunks to their bedroom, and got his clothes unpacked and put away. As she was hanging some clothes in the closet, Holly stepped back and said "Even though I've loved this place since I moved here, it sometimes felt more like just a house than a home. Seeing your things here with mine tells me that won't be a problem anymore. I have a real home again...not just a building with rooms and belongings, but a place where someone I love is waiting for me and wants me there. A place where I'll feel loved, cared for, and accepted. I've missed that."

"I feel like I belong here too, for the same reasons...knowing you want me here, that I'm accepted here."

"You **do** belong here. This is our home together, not just mine. Just because I bought it doesn't mean it's only mine. It became yours when you put this ring on my finger. That's just how I do things."

They finished unpacking his clothes, but decided to leave his books and other possessions until the next day. Around 11 p.m., they changed into pajamas, both tired from the busy day.

The next morning, Holly woke up and felt as though she were being watched. She realized she was cuddled up against Remus' chest, and his arm was across her belly. She turned her head a little and he realized she was awake.

"Good morning, beautiful. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes I did. Have you been watching me sleep?"

"I sure have, for about half an hour. I enjoy it. I did this several times last week. I wake up with you against me and almost can't believe it's real. Feeling you breathe reminds me it is."

She raised up a little and kissed him "That should help too."

"Yeah, it does. My dreams don't kiss as well as you do" he laughed.

She crawled out of bed, and while she was in the bathroom, he went to the kitchen, lit the fireplace and started breakfast.

A few minutes later, she came into the living room, fully dressed and ready for the day. She inhaled deeply as she walked toward the kitchen door.

"Breakfast smells wonderful. What are you cooking?"

"Bacon, eggs, toast, and coffee."

"Is it done yet?"

"Almost. It will only be a few more minutes."

She walked over to the coffeepot and poured herself a cup, then sat down at the bar. She loved to watch Remus cook. She thought to herself '_of course, I love to watch him do anything' ._ She sipped her coffee and about the time she got half finished, he brought a plate over to her. Then he got his plate and coffee and sat down next to her.

The meal was perfect, as everything he'd cooked for her had been. As they ate, they talked, deciding to spend the day unpacking his things and just relaxing.

By noon that day, the last of his three trunks was unpacked. Most of what he had brought was books and a few mementos from different people. Now it was all arranged in either the bedroom or the living room. They spent the rest of the day, and in fact the rest of the holidays relaxing and enjoying being together.

School resumed, and Holly was very busy. She found she loved coming home to Remus every night. The first week he had dinner either cooking or finished when she got home.

About a month after classes resumed, she came in with a big stack of papers to be graded. As she stepped out of the fireplace, Remus saw her and caught the stack she had in her arms.

"Looks like you're swamped. You must be preparing your classes for their exams."

"Yes, I am. They've got about eight weeks, and I'm trying to help them make the most of it. These papers are essays and answered study guides."

"After dinner, would you like me to help you grade some of them?"

"Sure. I'll let you grade the study guides. I have answer keys for each set, and if you have a question about something, ask me."

"That will be easy enough. At least this way, you won't be up all night working."

"True, and I appreciate it."

"Before I forget to mention it, I went to Hogsmeade during break today. I was passing by Gladrags, and in the window they had a watch that I think will be a perfect gift for Sirius."

"Did you get it?"

"No, because I'm not as certain about his tastes as you are. I'd like you to look at it first."

"Okay, we'll go this weekend."

"Sounds good to me."

They ate dinner, and afterwards started on the papers she'd brought home. He helped her, and only needed questions answered a couple of times. Since both of them worked at it, they were finished by midnight.

That weekend, as planned, they went to Hogsmeade. When they arrived at Gladrags, she showed him the watch. It was a very nice silver pocket watch with a pattern of brushed stripes inlaid on the case. It was a simple, classy design that would look good with anything.

"What do you think? Would he like this one?"

" I believe he would. This would be a very useful gift, because his got damaged in the fight at the Ministry last year. I don't think he's replaced it yet."

"Then we'll buy it for him. We can invite him to dinner tonight and give it to him then."

"Alright. How about steaks and all the trimmings for dinner. It's not his favorite meal, but he does like it."

"That sounds good. Want me to help you cook?"

"Sure. It's more fun when we both work on the meal."

They bought the watch, apparated to the edge of Godric's Hollow, picked up a few things at the market, then walked home.

Remus wrapped the watch, then contacted Sirius by floo network. He invited him over for dinner in a couple of hours. Sirius accepted ,of course, pleased with the chance to get out of Grimmauld Place.

Then, Remus and Holly started working on the meal. He put the steaks on to cook while she cut up the vegetables for the salad. The also prepared baked potatoes and dinner rolls.

A little before 6 p.m., Sirius showed up. The meal was not totally finished, so he offered to help. Holly turned down his offer, and told him that everything was under control.

Sirius sniffed the air "What have you got cooking? I see the salad and bread, but there's something good coming from the stove."

Remus said "Thank you. I have to admit it does smell good. I've cooked some really nice steaks and baked potatoes to go with the salad and rolls."

"You cooked? If it's as good as it was last time, I'm in for a treat. What's the occasion? Is Holly pregnant or something like that?"

"No, Holly's not pregnant as far as we know. It's certainly a possibility, but we don't think so. The occasion is just that we wanted to thank you for all you've done for me, and for us."

"I haven't done anything you wouldn't have done for me."

"While it's true I'd give you the shirt off my back if you asked me for it, I want you to know I appreciate you letting me live with you for the past three years. I also appreciate you being rough enough with me to make me realize how much I love Holly. Without your words, I'd have probably talked myself out of the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"You're welcome. I'm just glad you two found each other. It's good to see a smile on your face again, Remus. It's been a long time since I've seen you really happy."

"I can honestly say I've never been this happy. The best part is, I get to wake up next to this angel every morning."

Holly smiled and blushed a vivid red " I don't know if I'd call myself an angel. But dinner's ready if you are."

They carried the dishes of food to the dining table, then sat down and passed everything around. A few minutes into the meal, Sirius said "You've still got it, Remus. This is even better than Molly's cooking, and that's saying a lot."

"Thanks, Sirius."

Holly chimed in. "He's been spoiling me. I get to eat like this every night. Not that I'm complaining. I love it, in fact."

Once the meal was finished, Holly gathered the dishes and took them to the kitchen. When she returned, Remus told Sirius "I have something for you. The meal was a thank you for what you've done, but I wanted to give you something that would last."

He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small square box. He handed it to Sirius.

Sirius took it, but before he opened it, he clapped his friend on the shoulder and said

"Your friendship has been all the thanks I need for what I've done. I appreciate the sentiment, and I will accept the gift because it means so much to you. But I want you to know, you've never owed me anything."

He then opened the box, and lifted out the pocket watch.

"This is really very nice, Remus. I haven't had the chance to replace the one that got broken last year. Thanks."

"You're welcome. Holly saw it and showed it to me because she thought you might like it. I'm glad to see that you do. As for what you said earlier, I appreciate your feelings, but this was just something I needed to do."

"I know. By the way, Holly, you've got great taste. This is exactly the sort of thing I'd buy myself."

They spend another couple of hours talking, then Sirius decided he was ready to go home. He thanked them again for the meal and the gift, then left.

Soon, February warmed into March, and along with the change in weather came the usual increased workload for Holly. Her students were now only four weeks away from their OWLs and NEWTs, so she was giving them plenty to study. She'd also had a few more students sign up for tutoring, which meant a lot of late evenings at the castle. Several times, Remus came to her office between her last class and first tutoring session to bring her dinner. She could eat at the castle, but he absolutely loved cooking for her. Since she loved his food and he wanted to do it, she didn't argue.

April brought with it two weeks of exams for her fifth and seventh year students. In a way, it was a relief for Holly, because she was finished helping them prepare. But the relief was short-lived, because her other classes had to be ready for their finals. At least she made those tests, so she knew what they would be facing.

One night in early May, Holly came home from work a little early. When she landed in the fireplace, the first thing she heard was Remus humming. As she stepped out, she was able to get a whiff of something cooking. She tiptoed across the living room, set her briefcase and bag down on the table, then slipped off her shoes. She walked quietly across the room to the door of the kitchen, and glanced in. He had his back to the door, so she carefully walked in and put her arms around him from behind. At the same time, she said "I'm home."

"You're early"

"Yes, I am. So I thought I'd sneak up on you."

"It worked. I didn't know you were here till I felt your arms around me."

"Since I am home early, and I don't have quite as much to do as usual, would you like some help?"

"Sure. Do you want to chop the vegetables for the salad or shred the cheese for the lasagne?"

"I'll chop the veggies. Did you get these from the garden?"

"Yes. I picked these a couple of hours ago. These tomatoes are part of what made me choose this meal. They were so ripe they were just begging to be used, and I know how you love lasagne and salad."

" I do, and these look wonderful. I could eat them just like this. But I won't since you are preparing one of my favorite meals."

"I appreciate that, because there weren't anymore ripe to replace these with. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I'm making a chocolate pie for dessert."

"That sounds great. I'm so lucky, and so very spoiled. Not many women come home to a husband that not only can cook, but does it well and enjoys it."

"So you married me for my cooking talents?" Remus asked sarcastically.

Holly laughed "No. Everyone knows I married you for your body."

She walked over to him and kissed him. "Honestly, honey, I married you for the only reason I'd marry anyone...for pure, true love. You are my best friend, my soul mate, the only person in the world who has ever made me feel whole and happy. And you do all of that just by wrapping your arms around me."

He looked into her eyes and replied "You are the only person in the world who ever told me I am human strongly enough for me to believe it. You're the calm in the storm, my soul mate, and the one person in my life I can't live without. I cherish you with every breath, every heart beat. I'm yours forever."

She hugged him a little tighter. "Same here...I'm not going anywhere. Now, shall we finish our dinner?"

"Yes, because I suspect we're both hungry."

Once all of the preparation was done, she went to the bedroom and changed into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She came back and found him on the sofa, listening to the wireless. She joined him, and they listened to the program together. As it was going off an hour later, Remus checked on dinner.

Everything was done, so they sat at the bar to eat. The meal was wonderful; the lasagne was perfect, the salad was fresh and the bread was soft and buttery. While they ate, he asked her about her day.

"It wasn't too bad. Some of them, the younger ones especially, are getting restless. They know they've only got a couple of weeks left of term. But I managed to keep them focused."

"This time of year and the first part are always the hardest, at least from my experience, and from what I heard. It makes sense that it would be; most of the kids would rather be somewhere having fun. But at least you've only got two weeks left."

"Yes. I'll be glad when it's over too. I've enjoyed my year, but I'm ready for a break too. I won't miss those foot-high stacks of papers to grade either."

"It looks like that's how much you've got tonight. Want some help?"

"Sure. But I want to relax a bit before we start."

They finished dinner, and returned to the sofa. The wireless was still on, playing a different program. As before, she sat beside him. He pulled her close, and leaned down to kiss her. When they parted, she slipped from his embrace, then surprised him by straddling him. She wrapped her arms around him, looked deeply into his eyes, encouraging him. She kissed him passionately, leaving no doubt what she wanted. She pulled away, kissing his cheek, then kissing her way down his neck to his collarbone. As she moved to meet his lips again, she felt his hands untucking her shirt.

At that same moment, their fireplace hissed. Remus looked over her shoulder, and saw Professor McGonagall's head in the fire. Holly had heard it too, and was off his lap in a second.

McGonagall spoke " I'm sorry to interrupt your evening, but we need Holly back at school. Actually we could use both of you if you can come. Professor Dumbledore is away, so we're really shorthanded. Somehow, Death Eaters have gotten into the castle. We've got about a dozen in here, and there could be more that we don't know about."

Remus replied "We'll both be there in just a minute."

McGonagall thanked him, then disappeared.

Holly had already gotten up, turned off the wireless, checked the stove, and was walking into the living room when Remus got up. They walked to the fireplace and used the floo network to get to school.

They landed in the teachers' lounge, then ran out into the hall. They made their way to the Entrance Hall, where there was chaos. Several groups of faculty and students were fighting the Death Eaters. But there were sounds of battle coming from the stairs as well.

A few moments later, a handful of Death Eaters, including Fenrir Greyback, Draco Malfoy and Professor Snape ran down the stairs, firing off curses randomly. Holly joined the group that was trying to stop them, and managed to hit Draco. She sent curses at the others as well, and only narrowly missed Greyback. As this was going on, Harry Potter ran down the stairs, frantically firing at Snape. The Death Eaters ran out of the castle with Harry right behind them. The few Death Eaters that were fighting ran out behind them; there were some that had been stunned who were captured to be turned over to the Ministry.

This brought an end to the fighting. The staff and students began to regroup and check on each other. The healthy gathered the wounded and brought them up to the hospital wing. Holly and Remus each assisted in bringing someone upstairs. There were quite a few injured, but only a few of them severe. When they arrived at the hospital wing, they discovered that among the worst was Bill Weasley. He had been bitten by Greyback. They went to see him, and his family was already there. When they approached the bed, Mr. Weasley asked Remus what to expect.

Remus replied "I don't really know might happen. Greyback wasn't transformed, so I don't think Bill will be a true werewolf. But those are cursed wounds, and they will not likely ever heal fully. And, he may have some wolfish characteristics from now on."

Mrs .Weasley is obviously upset about it all, and comments about how he had been such a handsome boy. She also expresses concern that "he was going to be married". Fleur assured her that she is still going to marry Bill, that the scars only show he is brave, and that their feelings for each other won't change.

Remus spoke up " A few years ago I would not have believed it possible for a werewolf to be happy or fall in love either. But it can, and does, happen. He is fortunate to have found a woman who can love him for himself, and accept all of him."

A moment or two later, Harry walked in with the worst news of the night.

"Dumbledore's dead. Snape killed him. I saw it; I was behind the invisibility cloak, immobilized."

A stunned silence fell over the group. Holly and Remus wept at the loss of the man who had been like a father to them, who's helped them so much.

As they stood there, they could hear music filling the air. The sound felt as if it were their grief somehow turned to song. It seemed to come from everywhere. Though she'd only heard it once before, Holly recognized the sound as phoenix song. Fawkes' expression of grief at the loss of his master was terribly sad, yet beautiful. Somehow listening to it helped ease their pain just a little.

In the days following the battle, many students were brought home by their parents, but at least as many remained for the funeral. The Hogwarts Express was scheduled to leave about an hour after the service to bring home those who had stayed behind.

By the day of the service, most of those injured in the battle had been released from the hospital wing. Among those was Bill Weasley who, as expected, still had some unhealed wounds. Despite this, he was still the same friendly, easy-going young man they all knew.

Dumbledore's funeral was held a week after his death. It was a warm, sunny day and the sky was a beautiful clear blue. The service was to be held outside, and hundreds of rows of chairs had been set up near the lake. Witches and wizards from everywhere came to pay their respects to a man who had touched the lives of so many people.

A little man in plain black robes delivered the eulogy. Though Remus and Holly listened, each were lost in their own memories of Dumbledore. The first time they'd met him, his kind eyes and warm smile, the times in their teen years when he'd helped them through their difficulties.

Remus knew he owed his education to Dumbledore; so few people would have been willing to take the chances he had. Without that opportunity, he'd have never met his friends, never become the man he was today.

He squeezed Holly's hand gently and looked at her. Her face was puffy, tears were streaming down her cheeks.

She was thinking of how much Dumbledore had done for her after her parents' deaths. He'd seen to all the legal details for her, ensuring that no one took advantage of her. But most importantly, he had helped her grieve. He had established an open door policy to allow her access to anyone she felt comfortable talking to, anytime. He had spent many hours talking, and just as often, listening to her as she worked through her feelings. Once she'd graduated, they'd lost touch until last year, when he'd hired her. Little did he realize he would facilitate her meeting the man she would marry. She smiled at that thought, and remembered how pleased he'd been to hear of their engagement and to be asked to perform the ceremony for them.

By this time, the little wizard had stopped speaking and was stepping away from the table where Dumbledore's body lay. Bright white flames erupted around Dumbledore's body, and the table it rested on. The flames rose higher, obscuring the body. The smoke they produced spiraled into the air in various shapes. When it cleared, the fire vanished, and in its place was a white marble tomb.

From the forest, a shower of arrows came sailing through the air, stopping short of the crowd. This was the centaurs' tribute to Dumbledore.

A moment or two later, the crowd began to disperse. Holly and Remus lingered in their seats, allowing the crowd to thin. Then they made their way up to the castle and to her old quarters. They sat and talked for a while, discussing what to do next. There was much to be done; the castle had sustained some damage that needed to be repaired. Professor McGonagall had asked that everyone who could help remain at the castle to assist. They decided they would stay to help with the repairs. Holly would go back to their house to get a few things they would need to stay for a few days. If they were needed for a longer period of time, they could leave and return later.

Holly went to the Headmaster's office and spoke to Professor McGonagall . She told her they would be staying to help, and asked if there was a way to get a bigger bed. McGonagall told her there was a suite of rooms on the other end of the hall from the one she'd been using that was for a married couple. Therefore, it was larger and had a bigger bed. Holly accepted it, got the password, and went to tell Remus.

Four days after the funeral, Remus and Holly received more bad news. Sirius has been recaptured and imprisoned in Azkaban. Apparently he had gone to Godric's Hollow to visit James' and Lily's graves and had been reported by someone. The Aurors had arrived before he'd had a chance to get away. Since the dementors no longer guarded the prison, he would not receive the dementor's kiss, but would remain imprisoned indefinitely. They were both saddened by this news and went to visit him as soon as possible.

The repair work on the school progressed steadily, and by mid July it was finished. The teachers would have a few weeks of summer to relax and prepare for the new term.


	10. Endings and Beginnings

Over the summer, there was much upheaval. Aside from the repair work at the castle and Sirius' arrest, there was other bad news the couple must face. A few days before his seventeenth birthday, Harry Potter was taken away from the Dursleys' home by the Order of the Phoenix. During the flight, Alastor Moody was killed and George Weasley was injured.

On August first, Holly and Remus attended Bill Weasley's wedding to Fleur Delacour. At this event, they received news that the Ministry had been overthrown. Kingsley Shacklebolt, an Order member who works for the Ministry, sent his patronus to the Burrow with the message that everyone should leave. The guests all apparated away quickly, and most made it to safety. A day or so later, they learned that the Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, had been killed. He was replaced by Pius Thicknesse, who they would later learn is under the Imperius curse.

A couple of weeks later, Holly received a letter from Hogwarts. It was to inform her that Professor Snape had been appointed Headmaster of the school, and to let her know her class would no longer be taught there. She was given a week's notice to pick up any belongings she might have left at the castle. She looked through her things, and though she was almost sure she had brought everything home, she went to the castle the next day to check. It only took a few minutes for her to go to her classroom, office, and the quarters they had used during the repair work on the castle. She realized she was right, she had not left anything. However, her visit did allow her to pick up some bits of information. When she returned home, she told Remus what she'd learned.

"They've done away with Defense Against the Dark Arts. The class is now The Dark Arts. A few of the other teachers have been fired, and some have resigned. I also heard that the Carrows have been hired to teach."

"I can't imagine what that's going to do to the school. The Carrows are known for being cruel. The only way it could be worse would be if Bellatrix Lestrange or Fenrir Greyback were involved. I still can't get used to the idea of Snape being appointed Headmaster."

"Me either. At least some of the good teachers like McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout are still there. Maybe they can make some difference for the students."

"I sure hope so, because it could get very rough for them."

"Especially if any of them act too loyal to Harry or Professor Dumbledore."

"That's one of my concerns as well, along with the fact that muggleborns are being excluded. So many bright students will be expecting to go to Hogwarts this year and not be allowed."

"I'm concerned about that, and wondering what else is coming not only for the school, but for the wizard community as a whole. The fact that 'You-Know-Who' has so much control over the Ministry worries me. We're both in even more danger than we were just as Order members."

"Everything you've said is true. That's why we must be very careful where we go and what we do. Some extra charms on the house won't hurt either."

They further discussed what they could do to make the house as safe as possible, and finally decided on certain charms. They both felt safer once they'd worked out what to do.

Throughout the summer, they developed the habit of visiting Sirius as often as possible, usually once a week. They brought him newspapers, magazines and other gifts from the outside world each time. A few days after learning of the situation at Hogwarts, they went to Azkaban, with a few copies each of the Daily Prophet and The Quibbler.

Remus shared with Sirius the information they've gathered.

"You probably won't believe what I'm about to tell you, but it's true. Severus Snape has been appointed Headmaster at Hogwarts."

"That slimeball?! After he killed Professor Dumbledore?? How on earth could that happen?"

"We aren't sure yet. But the Ministry has been overthrown. Scrimgeour was murdered, and Pius Thicknesse has been put in his place. We don't know for certain, but we think he's been Imperiused. Along with that, Holly's been fired, and the Carrows have been hired to teach."

"What are they teaching? How to torture people?"

"I don't know what they're supposed to be doing. I doubt it really has anything to do with teaching. I suspect it's more to do with intimidating the students. The one small bit of good news is that Professors McGonagall, Sprout, Flitwick, and several others have stayed, so that will offer the students some protection."

"It's almost unbelievable. Of all the choices available, they had to pick Snape. And of course he let his death eater buddies in the school."

"There's more you don't know. They're not allowing muggleborns in the school either. Muggleborns in general are being persecuted, so we need to be careful."

"Yes, you two better be very careful. Don't put yourself at risk to come here. I appreciate the visits and the gifts, but if it's not safe, don't come. I don't want anything to happen to either of you."

"We will be careful. For now, at least, we can do this safely from time to time."

The three of them talked for a while longer, with Sirius reminding them again to be careful. He also told them that while it was no picnic, the prison was not quite as bad with the dementors gone.

With so much free time on her hands, Holly became a little restless. She worked through it by planting a big garden, and making plans for some remodeling on the house. By the time fall had arrived, they had built a new patio off the back of the house. It was large enough to seat about fifteen people comfortably and still have room for a nice grill.

One day after it was completed, they were outside enjoying it, and started talking about how easy it had been. Holly said "If a patio was that easy, I wonder how difficult a room would be?"

"Probably not much harder. What are you thinking about?"

"I was wondering if we could add a couple of bedrooms. We've talked about having children, and they will need bedrooms."

"You're not saying you're pregnant, are you?"

"No. But you do still want kids, don't you?"

"Yes, just not yet, not with the war going on. And I'd like to discuss it with a Healer first, to make sure the child won't be a werewolf."

"I had guessed that you would feel that way. I agree that it would be best to wait a while on starting a family."

"But, while we've got the time on our hands to build, it makes sense to go ahead. If we change our minds about children, they can be used for something else."

They decided to start in a few days on the additions...two bedrooms. Within about three months, they have completed the rooms, except for furniture and carpeting.

Along with working on their house, they have also done what they could for the Order. Unfortunately, that has not been much. Before he was killed, Professor Dumbledore had explained to Remus, Holly, and several others in the Order that the only person who could really make a difference now was Harry Potter. Dumbledore had given him a secret mission that, if he succeeded would be the end of Voldemort. He had given Harry as much information as he could, and was counting on Harry's friends to help him with it as well. Though everyone present had offered to help, Dumbledore had told them it was something Harry must do mostly alone.

So Remus had decided to become involved with a radio program the Weasley twins had started called "Potterwatch". It was intended to boost the morale of Harry's supporters and relay real information regarding the war. There were also occasional updates on Harry, assuring everyone that he was alive, but never divulging his location.

Holly didn't get as involved in the radio show as Remus, but she contributed from time to time. She gathered the same information and gave it to Mr. Lovegood, the editor of the Quibbler magazine. In the last year, that magazine had become a more accurate source of information than the Daily Prophet.

A few days before Christmas, they went to visit Sirius. They brought him a mixture of books and magazines, along with a box of homemade fudge. They visited for a while, and brought him up to date on the outside world. Remus tried cheer him up by reminding him that Harry was still alive and free. They left after about an hour, and after they're away, Remus said to Holly

"I'm really worried about Sirius. He seems so downhearted-the spirit has been knocked out of him. I guess being back here, even without the dementors must be really depressing. I'm sure he feels he'll never be really free again either. That wouldn't be a pleasant thought for anyone."

"No, it wouldn't. I'm sure there's a lot going through his mind that we're not aware of. Unfortunately, the only thing we can do to help is visit him. Hopefully this will be over soon, and maybe he will be freed."

"I hope you're right."

That same day, they went to Diagon Alley to do some Christmas shopping and to stock their supplies of ingredients for Remus' wolfsbane potion. During her last year at Hogwarts, Holly had asked Professor Slughorn to teach her to make it. She'd been a decent student in Potions, and took to it fairly easily. Now she made it for him every month with no problem.

Before they left Diagon Alley, they went by St. Mungo's to talk to the Healers about children. They consulted with the group of Healers that specialized in werewolves and were told that the odds of having a normal child are in their favor.

That evening, they spent several hours wrapping gifts, listening to the wireless and occasionally dancing. Some time just before 1 a.m., they went to bed.

They spent Christmas Eve with the Weasleys, enjoying Molly's cooking as much as ever. This time, instead of offering to help, they brought a couple of covered dishes with them. They brought gifts for everyone, and enjoyed spending the evening in such pleasant company. Though everyone was worried about the three teenagers being on the run, they all knew it had to be this way. They had received word from Bill a couple of days earlier that the trio was okay. He would not give any further information because he'd been asked not to, but just knowing they were well was enough to make everyone feel a little better.

After a delicious meal and exchanging gifts, the wireless was turned on for some holiday programming. They talked at times, sang with certain songs, and danced with a few others. It was a wonderful evening, and Holly hated to leave. But, a little before 9 p.m., the couple did go home.

When they arrived, Holly poured them each a mug of eggnog to sip while they listened t the wireless broadcast. They cuddled on the couch, talking about the day and each trying to guess what the other had bought them for Christmas.

Around midnight, they decided to go to next morning, they were up around 9 a.m. and opened their gifts before breakfast.

Holly opened hers first. It's a medium-sized box, and fairly heavy for its size. When she took off the lid, she found a wizard's chess set, and a royal blue lace tank top and bikini set. She told Remus "Thanks, honey. I really like this."

" I'm glad you do. I knew you wanted a chess set, and I have to admit I got the lingerie because I like it. I love the way that color looks on you. I had to get your sister's help with it, because I wasn't sure of your size."

"You two did a good job. I love the color and this will fit like a glove" she grinned at him playfully. "Now open yours."

He took the box from her hands. It was a bigger box than hers had been in, but didn't seem too heavy. He opened it, and was visibly surprised at what was inside. There was a new pair of black jeans, a silky blue-grey shirt, and a pair of black silk bikinis.

"Thank you sweetheart. I like these colors, and I'm sure they'll fit. I've never worn bikinis; I usually buy boxers. I'm not saying I don't like these, they're just different."

"That's why I got them, to see if you would like them. I think they'll look great on you. As for the other clothes, I love the way you look in jeans, and that shirt felt so light to my fingers. I thought it would be easier on your scars."

"It should; it's so light you can barely feel it. If it wasn't so cold, I'd wear it today."

"Unfortunately, it is. But I bought it with summer in mind anyway. So, how about we cook breakfast together?"

"Sounds like a good idea to me."

They went into the kitchen and prepared breakfast together. They opted for a light meal of oatmeal and toast, because they were going to Alyssa's house for lunch.

After they finished eating, Holly went into the bedroom to dress while Remus shaved. She decided to put on the lingerie he'd given her under the jeans and sweater she'd chosen. She thought that would make a nice surprise for him that night.

Within an hour, they were on Alyssa's doorstep. She answered, and Mark was there in a second, his arms around Holly's waist. As she bent down to hug him, she felt little arms around her legs. Stephanie had wrapped herself around Holly. She kissed Mark on the cheek, then picked up Stephanie. The one year old looked a lot like her mom, with curly dark brown hair and bright green eyes. They walked into the living room and put down the gifts they had brought. As they did, Stephanie surprised Remus by reaching for him. Holly told him "She wants you to hold her. Go ahead, she seems to like you."

He did, cautiously, and the little girl began playing with his hair. Holly watched the two of them, thinking of how he might act with a little girl of their own.

They spent a couple of hours eating, listening to music, and just enjoying each others' company. They exchanged gifts, then all went outside so the kids could play in the snow. The adults got caught up in the spontaneity of it and soon were building a snowman.

About an hour later, they went inside with cold noses and pink cheeks. They had some hot cocoa to warm up, and Stephanie again seemed drawn to Remus. He played with her, seeming to enjoy himself more as time passed.

They went home just before dark, wanting to have some time to themselves as well. Once there, they turned on the wireless and sat down on the sofa. They looked again at the gifts they had received from Alyssa's family. Alyssa and Steve had given them two "couple" gifts; a nice box of ivory parchment with their names printed in gold at the top, the other was a pair of his & hers bath towels.

Holly then commented on the day, especially about Stephanie.

"Stephanie really seemed to like you, honey. I guess the girl's got good taste."

"She did seem fascinated with me. It made me wonder what it will be like when we have children. I hope I can be a good father."

"I'm sure you will. Most people don't really know what they're doing beforehand anyway, you just learn as you go. Even parents that have several children will tell you each one is different and requires different skills. All anybody can do is try, and give them lots of love."

"I guess that's true, but it seems so much harder than that."

"In some ways, it probably is. But you adapt and learn. I have complete faith in you."

Then the radio played a slow song, so they got up and danced. He held her tight, taking in every detail of how she felt in his arms, how she moved, even how she smelled. She lingered in his embrace, not wanting the song to end. She loved the feel of his arms around her, the sound of his heartbeat when she had her head on his chest. The song ended, but instead of going back to the sofa, she kissed him passionately. He responded, his mouth eagerly seeking hers. He reached down to her waist, found the hem of her sweater and slipped it up her body, breaking their kiss just long enough to get it over her head. He tossed the sweater on the couch, then ran his hands along her body, feeling the slight roughness of the lace against his skin. She caught his hand before he untucked the tank top and led him to the bedroom.

The next morning, she awoke first. She lay there, nude but warm under the covers. She was on her back, with one of Remus' arms was draped across her stomach. She slowly rolled from her back to her side, hoping her movement would not wake him. It didn't, so she watched him sleep for the next half hour. _He looks so content. _She thought, realizing that she was partially the source of the soft smile that he wore. _I know it's not just because of the passion of last night, but because he is truly happy. I would never have thought that I could help heal someone the way I have helped him. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen him change from someone who had condemned himself as unworthy of love to someone head over heels in love with me._ She ran her fingers through his sandy hair, and whispered "I love you Remus". He moved a little in his sleep, and by doing so, put his face closer to her. She kissed his cheek gently, and as she backed away, his eyes fluttered open.

"Good morning " she said

"Good morning, sweetheart."

"I've been watching you sleep. You looked so peaceful."

"I was dreaming of you. That always makes me happy."

"Thanks, you make me happy too."

He pulled her close and kissed her.

As the snow of winter melted and the days began to lengthen, Holly found herself full of energy. She didn't mind winter, but she was always glad when spring did arrive.

One Saturday in early April, however, she awoke feeling very ill. She sprinted to the bathroom, nauseous, but puzzled as to what was wrong. A few minutes later, Remus came in to check on her, having heard the noise she'd made. After a while, she felt able to go to the living room. Once she was comfortable on the couch, he asked

"What's wrong? Did something you ate disagree with you?"

"No, I don't think so. It could be a virus, but it also just occurred to me that I might be pregnant."

"Pregnant? Do you think so?"

"I missed my period a couple of weeks ago, so yes, it's possible. I'll get Alyssa to pick up a pregnancy test kit from a pharmacy in London. That will tell me for sure."

"Is there anything you need me to do?"

"Just being here helps. But some tea and crackers will help settle my stomach."

A bit later, she got Remus to use the floo network to contact Alyssa. When he'd finished talking to her, she stepped out of the fireplace into the living room. Holly told her exactly what she needed, gave her some muggle money, and she left.

An hour later, Alyssa returned with the items Holly had requested. She stayed while Holly performed the test. Holly came out of the bathroom, a surprised smile on her face.

"It's positive. I'm pregnant."

Alyssa squealed, then hugged both Holly and Remus.

"I'm gonna be an aunt. I'm so excited!"

Remus hugged Holly " A baby! I'm gonna be a father."

Holly replied "Yes, in about eight months. In the meantime, I hope the morning sickness doesn't last long."

Alyssa told her "For me, it was only about six weeks. But I've heard as little as four and as much as twelve. Hopefully you'll be in the first group."

After a few more minutes of celebrating Alyssa left, telling Holly that if she needed her, let her know.

Remus sat down beside Holly, and put his arm around her.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of you. Just help me learn what I need to do."

"I appreciate that, and I will. For now, I just need to rest."

She slid down in the couch so that she was stretched out, with her head in his lap. A little while later, she's feeling better, so he asks if she'd mind if he visits Sirius to tell him. She laughs a little "No, of course not. He'd be furious if you didn't let him know right away."

Over the next couple of weeks, Remus did a very good job of taking care of Holly. She explained what she needed, and he made sure she had it.

In late April, they are notified one evening of a battle going on at the school. Voldemort's followers have overrun the castle and grounds. The teachers that are loyal to Dumbledore, along with most of the students, are putting up a good fight. But they need everyone they can get, so McGonagall has summoned everyone in the Order. Remus tries to talk Holly into staying behind, because of her pregnancy, but she insists on going anyway, reminding him that she could be killed at home just as easily. So, they leave almost immediately. They arrive at the school in seconds, having used the floo network. They emerge in the staff room as before, and run out into the corridor. As they enter the corridor, a death eater runs by one end of the hall, and Remus goes after him; at the same time, one comes through the hall from the opposite end, and Holly goes after that one. This is the last they see of each other for about an hour. They each skillfully defend themselves against several different opponents. Remus is confronted by, and kills Fenrir Greyback, the werewolf who had infected Remus as a child.

There's a break in the battle, when Voldemort announces that they have an hour to collect their dead and wounded. At this point, everyone has gathered in the Great Hall. When Remus walks in, Holly sees him and runs to him. They embrace tightly, each thankful the other is alive. They then separate, just holding hands, and see that quite a few were not so fortunate. Among the families who have lost a loved one are the Weasleys, whose son Fred was killed. After a moment's thought, the couple approaches them. Holly walks to Mrs. Weasley, and without a word, just hugs her. She holds the older woman for a few minutes, just letting her cry on her shoulder. Molly then pulls away, and rubs Holly's shoulder in silent acknowledgment of her show of support. They talk a little, but don't really say much...after all, there's not much one can say to comfort a family who has lost a child. Holly steps back a bit, watching the scene, reminded of how she'd felt when her family had been killed. It had taken a long time for her to completely heal from that, but she had finally found peace in her life. She hoped they would as well.

A while later, fighting breaks out again. There were a handful of Death Eaters in the castle, and Voldemort himself was in the Great Hall. Everyone that could was engaged in combat with someone. Bellatrix Lestrange was battling Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood and Ginny Weasley. The girls were defending themselves well, then Mrs. Weasley saw what was going on, and ran to their aid. Fueled by rage and grief, she easily finished Bellatrix off, thus saving her daughter and friends.

As this was happening, Harry Potter walked into the Great Hall, removing his invisibility cloak after seeing Bellatrix killed and McGonagall, Slughorn, and Kingsley Shacklebolt dueling with Voldemort. He announced that he wanted no help, this was between the two of them. After a few long minutes, during which he explained the mistakes Voldemort had made in his plan for immortality, he killed him. As had happened before, Voldemort's wand refused to perform correctly, having recognized Harry as it's master. The curses met, Voldemort's killing curse backfired and killed him instead. In that instant, it was over...the Dark Lord was dead, and the rest of the wizard world was free from the fear his reign had caused.

The next several weeks were spent in a blur of activity and sadness. There were funerals for all the dead; the Lupins attended the services for Fred Weasley and some of the other students. Then, they helped the rest of the staff help repair the castle, which had sustained major damage during the battle.

The year Snape had been headmaster had been difficult for all the students. There had been a new admissions policy that had allowed only pureblood students to attend. Any that showed any loyalty to Harry or Dumbledore had been expelled. As a result, there were a lot of gaps in learning for all concerned. To correct this, the old, open admission policy was reinstated, and all students higher than first year would take tests in each subject. This would allow the instructors to tailor the classes to the needs of the students. Anyone who needed it would also receive tutoring in any area necessary.


	11. Return to Normal

Chapter 11 "Return to Normal"

The next several weeks were spent in a blur of activity and sadness. Funerals were held for the dead; the Lupins attended the services for Fred Weasley and some of the other students.

After the last funeral was held, Professor McGonagall asked the entire staff, and anyone else who is willing to help with the repairs to the castle. The building had sustained quite a bit more damage than it had last year, so it was going to take a lot of work to repair it.

Aside from the physical damage to the buildings, there are administrative obstacles to be dealt with. Professor McGonagall was appointed Headmistress by the new Minister, Kingsley Shacklebolt. This left her to deal with the problems caused during Professor Snape's year as Headmaster. Many students who should have been admitted were not, and quite a few that were at school ended up in hiding. Subjects were omitted or drastically altered, and the air of tension and fear created an unhealthy learning environment. A fair solution regarding how students should advance must be reached.

About three weeks into the repairs, Remus and Holly received some good news. Sirius had been released from Azkaban. He appeared at their quarters the day after he's released. The couple walked into their quarters while taking a break from their work, and found him sitting on the sofa, reading. Remus spoke to him

"Sirius ! What are you doing here? How did you get out? You didn't escape again, did you?"

"No, Remus, I didn't escape. They've released me. I'm free!!"

"That's great! What happened to get them to release you?"

"As I'm sure you know, our friend Kingsley is the new Minister. He asked Harry to come to work for the Ministry. Harry agreed, on the condition that I was released. And, to make it even better, my record has been cleared and a full account of the real story will appear in tomorrow's paper."

"That's wonderful. You'll actually be able to have a decent life now. You won't have to hide anymore."

"I know. I almost can't believe it. I heard about the damages to the school, and knew you'd likely be helping repair it, that's why I came here instead of to Godric's Hollow. I figured I'd see if you could use an extra hand. I'd offer my wand, but I haven't gotten a new one yet. I've only been out a day."

"I'm sure we can use the help. We've got every witch and wizard we could find here helping, and it will still be weeks before we're done. McGonagall doesn't know if school will be able to open on time or not. As for a wand, you could go into Diagon Alley tomorrow and get one, I'm sure."

The three of them talked for a little while longer, then went downstairs to see Professor McGonagall. Sirius told her the same thing he'd told them, and she agreed they could use the help. She told him to work with Remus, and they left to get started. The three of them worked together until dinner, then ate in the Great Hall with the rest of the workers.

After the meal, they were done with the work for the day, but McGonagall had called a meeting of the staff in an hour. Holly was included because she had been on staff the year before Snape's term as Headmaster. She wanted to discuss with them any ideas they had regarding the situation with the students.

At the meeting, Professor McGonagall stated that she felt it would be fairest to advance all students to the next year, except seventh years...they were a separate case, and adjust the curriculum to fit the needs of the students.

Each year-level class could be divided into three sections; advanced, regular, and remedial. An exam could be given before the start of term so the teachers could determine where the students should be placed. If a student scored high on the exam, they would be placed in the advanced section, if they scored below a certain score, they would be placed in the remedial section.

The seventh year students would also take an exam, but it would be based on the requirements for whatever job they've chosen. If they meet the criteria, they graduate; if they don't, they stay behind and take whatever classes they need to pass. They could be retested before winter break, and if they pass that time, they would graduate.

Everyone at the meeting agreed to this, so the matter of advancement is settled.

Then she brought up the other item she needed to discuss with the staff; filling vacancies.

"As has been the case for several years now, we are without a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. I know with Voldemort gone, some may tink we don't need the subject, but I believe we do. I have someone in mind, but wanted to bring it to your attention first."

"Who are you thinking of?" asked Professor Flitwick

"I am thinking of asking Remus Lupin to return. He was by far the best we've had in quite a long time, and the students seemed to like him."

"Do you think that's wise? Last time, he missed his potion one night and ended up a full werewolf, loose on the school grounds. We were lucky no one was seriously hurt." said Madam Pomfrey.

"I remember quite well what happened last time, Poppy. However his circumstances have changed. I have total faith that he will receive every dose of potion that he's supposed to. He now has a wife to make sure he gets it, and I'm sure if needed, Professor Slughorn would help with that too."

"Of course I would. I can make the potion if Mrs. Lupin is unable to for some reason, and I can make certain he gets it." said Slughorn.

"It's not as if he ever refuses a dose, that was an accident. I know he regrets that incident, and will not allow it to happen again. I will brew the potion myself and see to it he gets his doses. However, I have another issue to bring up. " said Holly.

"First, with these reassurances, does anyone have any complaint about Professor Lupin returning?" asked Professor McGonagall.

No one objected, so she addressed Holly "Okay, what did you need to bring up?"

"I won't be able to teach for most of this year. I'm pregnant, and the child is due around late October or early November. I can teach until that time, but you will need to replace me. I can help train my replacement if you'd like. You should plan on this person being here for a while, because I won't be back for several years."

"I'm glad you're telling me this now, we've still got time to find someone. Congratulations, by the way. I'm sure you're both quite excited."

"Yes, we are. I'm sorry for the inconvenience it's causing though."

"It won't be a problem. You can work until we find someone else, then you can help them adjust."

"Yes, ma'am, I will."

With that settled, all that remained was to decide on dates for the exams. They decided the last week of July and first week of August would be best, it would give them about five weeks to finish repairs and create the test. The students would be notified of the plans and test dates so they could prepare.

The meeting was then adjourned, and Holly returned to her quarters. Remus and Sirius are in the living room, talking. She walked over to Remus, gave him a hug, then said

"I hope neither of you will think this rude, but I'm going to take a shower. I'm tired, my feet hurt, and I want to relax."

"Of course we won't think it rude. Sirius doesn't expect to be entertained, or for us to drop everything because he's here. He's too happy to be free to worry about those things. And when you finish your shower, sit down by me and I'll rub your feet."

"You know you're spoiling me. But I will take you up on it."

At that, she went to take her shower.

The two men continued to visit. Sirius teased Remus about spoiling Holly.

"You know, you do that kind of thing often enough, she'll come to expect it."

"Actually, she doesn't. But she does really appreciate all I do for her. And, I love doting on her. There's nothing quite like doing something for a genuinely appreciative recipient. Her pregnancy will give me the chance to care for her like she does for me each month."

"It's hard to believe I'm hearing this from the same man who couldn't believe anyone could ever love him. The same man who came so close to pushing this woman away. But I'm glad for you; it's good to see you so happy. And now, you're taking the next step- fatherhood."

"Yeah...I have to be honest, though, Sirius. I'm scared. Neither of us exactly had 'normal' childhoods, 'normal' parents to learn from. We don't have a good foundation of knowledge to work with. How will we know how to handle it?"

"I can't tell you how to be a parent, but I can tell you I don't think the fact that your childhoods weren't normal will have much affect. I think it will be much more important that you love and care for your child. And that you both have a good set of values you adhere to and teach your child. But you do have examples to learn from that you probably haven't thought of yet. The Weasley family is an excellent example of a good family; so is Alyssa's family, from what you've said. Ask them questions, and learn from what you see."

"You're right that I hadn't though of them. But I do agree they are good sources of information. I hope you're right that we can do a good job. I also have to admit that, even though the Healers said the chances were small that the child would be a werewolf, I'm nervous about that possibility. I want to believe them, but it's one of my worst fears, that I would pass this on to a child. I thought I'd worked this out, that's why I decided to become a father. But the night after she told me, it all came back. I'm not quite as nervous now as I was when we first decided to get married, but it's still more than I'd like. I try not to let Holly know, though."

"I think you should let her know. She needs to know how you feel. Maybe she can help you put your fears to rest."

"Maybe you're right. She seems completely confident that everything will be fine. I guess she just isn't as easily worried as I am."

"I bet it's not that. She probably has already accepted the idea that if the child is a werewolf, she'll simply love it and care for it just like she does its father. Remember, she loves you for yourself, she's going to love your child for itself, and because it's her flesh and blood as much as it is yours. It is your own unique creation, and she will love it for that. You will too, I suspect."

"I'm sure I will. And you're probably right about her. We'll discuss it sometime when she's not so tired."

A few minutes later, Holly came into the room. She was wearing a long fluffy robe with a pair of boxer shorts and one of Remus' undershirts. She sat down beside him on the couch, and put her feet on his lap.

"I'd like to take you up on your offer."

"Of course."

He started rubbing her feet, and as he did, she could feel the fatigue washing away.

"I almost forgot to tell you something, honey."

"What?"

"At the meeting tonight, McGonagall said she's considering you for the DADA post, if you're interested."

"What did the other teachers say?"

"That as long as you didn't miss your potion, it would be okay with them. McGonagall called you the best DADA teacher we've had in a long time."

"Really? It would be great to work here again. If she asks, I'll definitely accept, unless you don't want me to."

"No, I want you to if you want the job. The students liked you, I think, and you have a lot of knowledge to bring to the job."

"I think they liked me too, and I did find teaching very rewarding. I certainly wasn't expecting this."

"Looks like our places this year will be reversed, because I won't be working long, if at all. I told McGonagall tonight about my pregnancy, and that I wouldn't be returning after the baby's born."

"What did she say? Didn't she already know you're pregnant?"

"She was okay with it. She was glad I told her this early, so she'll have time to find a replacement. No, she didn't know I'm pregnant. I hadn't got around to telling her yet. I'm only a couple of months along, I haven't started showing yet. I've only gained five pounds, so she'd have no reason to guess."

"I'm glad you came up with a plan as far as your classes. I didn't realize you hadn't told her yet."

By this time, Holly was very relaxed. Remus' foot rubs always made her feel good. She cuddled with him on the couch for a while, then they got ready for bed. This suite of rooms had an extra bedroom, so they let Sirius sleep there.

The weeks of summer moved along quickly. By late June, the repair work on the castle was nearly completed. Holly, like many of the other teachers, began to spend her free time preparing the exams for the students. She also worked on a rough draft of lesson plans, because since her class had been omitted, she knew they would not have learned any new material. Therefore, they'd be a year behind where they would normally be. A class called "Muggle Studies" had been taught, but it had become a course on the inferiority of muggles and reasons to hate them- it bore no resemblance to the normal course that was taught. This was the reason she'd been dismissed; her muggleborn status and tolerant attitude didn't fit with what they were teaching last year.

The second week of July saw the repair work completed. The volunteer workers left, but the teachers of course remained at the castle because of the nearness of the exams. They also wanted to get their classrooms ready for the start of term, which would start only a week late. Around this time, Professor McGonagall told Holly she had found a replacement for her. Since there were still a few weeks of summer, Holly would have time to familiarize the new teacher with the text, lesson plans, and anything else they needed to know.

The new teacher was a young woman, Jennifer Wilson, who was about twenty-five. Like Holly, she's muggleborn. She graduated from Hogwarts eight years ago, and had been working as a tutor for a handful of families. She lived near Professor Sprout, who suggested Professor McGonagall contact her. Holly decided that the first thing Jennifer should do was get familiar with the textbook. So, she gave her a copy, along with some of the lesson plans she'd made.

"If you have time, read the whole book. But, at least read the first few chapters. That's where you'll be starting with the younger students. I'll show you how to determine where to start with the older groups in a few days."

"Okay. Professor McGonagall said something about the students taking a placement exam. Will I need to do anything in regards to that?"

"Not really. Due to circumstances, many of the students basically lost a year. The exam is to determine what material each class will cover. I made the exams for this subject. I'll grade them and sort them into sections. Then we'll work together to plan what the classes will cover the first few weeks. After that, how the class learns and performs will dictate what you cover. It sounds harder than it is. It's probably fairly similar to tutoring, but you're dealing with more students at a time. You can expect to tutor a few students privately as well."

"I'm glad to know you've got this worked out. And I'm glad to have you available to help me."

"You'll have me for a few weeks, but most likely by the end of September, maybe a little earlier, I'll be gone."

"Professor McGonagall said you're pregnant. If I may ask, when are you due?"

"Early November, maybe as early as late October. I'm not really sure."

Holly then focused her time on finishing the exams. A few days before the deadline, she was ready. When exam day came, she was very glad that her subject was only taught to those in third year and above. It meant fewer students to test, therefore a shorter day for Holly. It only took a little over five hours for her to finish giving the exams, compared with all day for subjects like Charms and Potions.

That evening, she returned to her quarters, tired, aching, and with a bag full of papers to grade. Remus looked at her as she walked in, took her bag, led her to the couch, then removed her shoes and began rubbing her feet and legs without even asking. He watched her face as she began to relax . "I know these are tired. What else hurts?"

"My back. Even though I sat down when I could, it takes a lot less to make my back hurt now. I guess it's the fifteen extra pounds I've put on. But from what Alyssa has told me, this is normal for four months."

"I'm sure she's right. I'm sorry that your back hurts. Why don't I draw you a warm bath? A soak would probably feel good."

"I appreciate the offer, but I can do it. However, you could see about getting us some dinner when I'm done, if you don't mind."

"Of course I don't mind. Let me know what you want and when, and I'll have the kitchen send it up. Or I can prepare it for you."

"If you want to prepare it, that would be great, but tonight the kitchen's food will be okay too. I was thinking of some vegetable soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, and some iced tea."

"I'll make that for you, I should be able to have it ready by the time you're done."

About forty-five minutes later, she returned, dressed in pajamas, a robe and slippers. On the dining table was her dinner, exactly as she'd asked, still warm. Remus was putting away the last of the dishes he'd used to prepare it . She walked over to him and told him "Thanks. This smells delicious. Come eat with me."

After the were finished with dinner, they sat on the sofa and talked for quite a while. He had also been busy preparing lesson plans the last few weeks. He and Professor McGonagall had decided that since Defense Against the Dark Arts had not been taught at all, and it had been so uneven, they would not test the students. Instead, they would all be considered "regular" sections, and he would proceed slowly with them at first. Then each class could be tailored to suit their needs. He decided to use some of the lesson plans he'd written five years ago as a starting point. In fact, many of them wouldn't require many changes.

Over the next few days, Holly worked on grading test papers. Jennifer helped some, but Holly wanted to do a lot of the work herself, to get a good sense of where the students were. She discussed the tests with Jennifer, and they worked together on sorting the tests, recording the scores, and adjusting the lesson plans. The last part was the hardest, but the two women collaborated on it and by the end of August, had a good set of lesson plans for the beginning of school.

Since Jennifer already had quite a bit of teaching experience, Professor McGonagall told Holly that if she wanted, she could let Jennifer take the class from the beginning, thus avoiding changing teachers in a month's time. Holly agreed that made sense, and gave Jennifer all the materials for the class, and returned home. Remus had decided he would be coming home each evening so he could be with Holly.

By the time school started the second week of September, Holly was seven months pregnant. She was staying in touch with Alyssa, who told her that the twenty-five pounds she'd gained was normal, and that the swollen ankles, aching back, and fatigue were also normal. As a Healer and a mother, she had plenty of experience to draw from, and gave Holly good advice. She had also examined Holly a couple of times, just to be sure nothing was overlooked.

The first couple of weeks of term, Holly found herself missing work. She was a bit bored and restless with so much free time. She spent a fair amount of time listening to the wireless or reading, and she would cook dinner for Remus before he got home.

During this time, Holly noticed how strongly she could feel the baby move. She'd been feeling movements for a while, but now that she wasn't so busy, she could pay more attention. It became an evening habit for her and Remus to stretch out on the bed after she'd showered and put their hands on her stomach to really feel it kick or stretch. They both found themselves fascinated at the changes that were occurring and at the idea that they had produced a little human being. Often, during these sessions, they would discuss different things about the baby. Sometimes it was serious topics, like Holly assuring Remus about his parenting skills or trying to put to rest his fears about the baby not being normal. Other times, they would speculate on what the child might be like or look like. One night in late September, they started talking about names.

Holly suggested "If it's a girl, I like Marie Elizabeth. But I'm not sure about a boy's name."

"What was your dad's name?"

"John Thomas. But I don't want to name him just after my dad. What was your dad's name?"

Remus laughs "John. He didn't have a middle name. That's why my middle name's John. Remus is just a name my mom liked."

"So, how about John Remus? It would honor both grandfathers, you, and indirectly, you mother."

"That sounds good. I like the girl's name you chose too."

"Thanks. The 'Marie' is for my mom. Elizabeth just seemed to fit with it. Now that I think about it, didn't you once tell me that was your mom's name?"

"Yes, I did. It was her name. I like the way they fit together too."

"I wonder what it's going to be?"

"Me too. But I hope it gets its looks from you."

Holly laughed " Only if it's a girl. If it's a boy and looks like you, we'll have to fight the girls off him. But either way, I hope it gets your intelligence and kindness."

"And your confidence. That quiet, gentle way you have of nurturing someone. I'm sure your contribution to the intelligence area will be significant as well- you're no slouch there either."

"Thanks. I guess we'll know soon enough."

As the weeks went by, Holly found new things to do while Remus was at work. She decided to try her hand at writing children's stories. She had Remus' old copies of some fairy tale books, along with a couple she'd purchased in London. But she'd always enjoyed writing and felt she could come up with some good stories too.

Now that she was nearing her due date, Mrs. Weasley, who had been checking on her a couple of times a week, began to visit her daily. She had offered to help Holly deliver the baby, since Holly wanted it to be born at home. Holly had accepted, knowing that she was in good hands with her. Over the years since they'd met, Holly had come to really like and trust Mrs. Weasley. Molly, in turn, seemed to have adopted Holly, taking care of her in ways her own mother would have done if she'd been alive.

On November first, Holly and Remus were cuddled on the couch, listening to the crackle of the fireplace and talking about his day at school. She'd been having some slight pains from time to time during the day, but she'd been told it was not unusual to experience that as the pregnancy progressed. So, she'd dismissed the feelings she'd had and gone on about her day. This evening, however, she couldn't get comfortable, and the pains seemed stronger and closer together. She decided it would be best to contact Mrs. Weasley. Remus contacted her by floo network and told her what Holly had described.

She said "It sounds like she probably is in labor. I thought by the way she was feeling when I came by earlier that she would be soon, but it's always a little hard to tell the first time. I'll be there in a few minutes. In the meantime, help her get to the bed and get comfortable if she can."

"Okay, I'll try. See you soon."

Remus helped Holly to the bed. With a fair amount of effort from both of them, they managed to get her somewhat comfortable. A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley arrived. She looked Holly over, and speculated that it wouldn't be long. Remus sat beside Holly on the bed, holding her hand, rubbing her back and doing anything else she wanted.

About four hours later, around 11:15, Mrs. Weasley told Remus to get a couple of towels, a wash cloth, and a bowl of warm water. She expected the baby to be born very soon. He did, and placed them within easy reach. He then got beside Mrs. Weasley, but where he could still hold Holly's hand.

Within another thirty minutes, the baby was born. Mrs. Weasley handed him to Remus as she severed the cord. He cleaned him up and handed him to his mother. Holly held her newborn son in a warm, tender embrace. Remus bent over and kissed each of them, then spoke to his son.

"Welcome to the world, John Remus Lupin. I love you."

After a few minutes, Mrs. Weasley asked to weigh and measure him. Remus helped her; he weighed 8 pounds, 5 ounces, and was 22 inches long. She wrote down all the information, and told them to contact St. Mungo's later so that the birth can be recorded and a birth certificate issued.

The couple thanked her for her help, and offered to pay her for her work.

She refused, saying "I'd do the same for anyone I consider family. You're almost like a daughter to me, Holly. I'm just glad I was able to help."

Holly replied "I'm glad you were too. I'm glad to have someone I trust and care about help with this instead of a stranger."

Mrs. Weasley left, and Remus spent a long time sitting with Holly and John. As he sat there, holding him, Holly looked over at them and said "He looks just like you."

"Do you think so? Because I thought he favored you more."

"Well, there's no question he has your hair- mine was never that shade. His eyes may change when he gets a little older, but for now they're bright blue like yours. And he's long, which tells me he'll be tall...that's from both of us. But I'm glad he favors you; you're a very good-looking man."

"Thank you. And now that you point it out to me, I see what you mean. But, I do think he's got your mouth. He hasn't smiled yet, but the shape of his mouth looks like yours."

"Yeah, I guess so. At least he's here, and he's healthy. I think we're both going to enjoy watching him grow up."

A while later, Holly is very tired and ready for bed. Since Mrs. Weasley had helped Remus change the sheets not long after John was born, all Holly needed to do was give the baby to Remus and go to sleep. Remus held him for a little while, but John soon fell asleep as well. Remus put him in his bassinet by their bed, then laid down for a nap as well.

Just as the sun came up, Remus was awakened by the sound of singing. He opened his eyes and saw Holly in the rocking chair, holding John and singing softly to him. Evidently the baby had cried and she heard it before the sound woke him up. He laid there for a while, watching and listening. In the three years they'd known each other, he'd never heard Holly sing. He didn't know if it was the early hour, or if he was just biased because he loved her so much, but her voice sounded beautiful. He hoped he'd be lucky enough to hear that more often.

When she stopped and placed the now-sleeping infant back in his bed, Remus complimented her " That was beautiful, honey. I might need to start requesting lullabies."

"I'll sing for you, just don't ask me to rock you." she grinned.

She crawled back in bed, glad to find the covers had kept her spot somewhat warm. She drifted back to sleep within a few minutes.

Remus, however, decided he would contact both St. Mungo's and the school. Today was Friday, so he would have had classes, but he'd told Professor McGonagall when term started to expect him to take several days off when the baby was born. She'd said she would have expected nothing less from him or anyone. So, he'd made some lesson plans that could be carried out by another teacher to be used when needed. When he contacted her, Professor McGonagall seemed sleepy. " What is it Remus?"

"Sorry to disturb you, but I wanted to let you know Holly had the baby a few hours ago. I won't be in to work for a few days."

"Of course not. I'll have someone fill in for you. What is the baby? What did you name it?"

"A boy. John Remus, 8 pounds, 5 ounces, 22 inches long. Born at 11:50 p.m"

"Congratulations. Holly's okay too, I presume?"

"Yes, just tired. She's asleep now, though. They both are."

"Did you leave your spare lesson plans in your office?"

"Yes, I did. On top of my desk, in a folder labeled 'extra lesson plans'.There's one set for each class. I've done enough to last five days. I'll be back by then."

"Okay. I appreciate you letting me know early."

Over the next several days, Remus helped Holly as much as possible with their son. He tried to make sure Holly got enough sleep, and found he really enjoyed the quiet moments when she's sleeping and he's holding John. Several times he offered to rock the baby to sleep so she could get a few extra minutes rest. During those times, Remus would cuddle John, listening to him breathe, feeling his warmth against him, and find himself in awe of the fact that he'd been a part of creating this tiny life.

At the end of the week, Remus hated to go back to work. He enjoyed his job, but had really treasured the time he'd spent with his wife and son. At least he knew he would get to see them every night.

Remus was a little nervous when the full moon came around the first month after John's birth. He knew this would be the month that would tell if he was in fact normal. As he prepared for his own transformation, he watched his son, looking for any hint of difference.

Holly assured him that "whatever happens, I still love both of you."

As the moon rose, and Remus' transformation began, she watched John. He was sleeping in her arms. Other than opening his eyes briefly when Remus howled, he simply continued his nap. She opened this blanket and looked him over, but nothing had changed. When Remus walked over to her a few minutes later, she told him

" He's normal. Not a hair out of place, nothing changed at all."

Remus nodded his head to show he understood.

The next morning, when he changed back, he hugged her, saying

"I couldn't express how relieved I am to know for sure that our son is normal. I'm so pleased to know he won't suffer the pain I do each month."

"I had a feeling he would be normal. But you know, even if he'd been a werewolf, I would have loved him and cared for him just as I do you."

"I know." He kissed her, then went to bed for a while.

As Remus curled up on their bed, he thought of how lucky he was. He had a wonderful wife, a precious son, and a job he loved. Somehow, in the span of three years, his life had gone from that of an outcast to someone who had everything he wanted.


	12. Epilogue

Fifteen years later

Far from having a the lonely childhood that sometimes accompanies being a firstborn, John had a handful of playmates from early on. He was often at his Aunt Alyssa's house, playing with Stephanie, who was only a couple of years older. Bill and Fleur Weasley had a daughter who was only a year older. Charlie had also married not long after Remus and Holly; he and his wife had a son who was only a few months older.

It had taken Remus and Holly three years, but they realized there was something more they wanted out of life...another child. Just before John was four years old, Holly gave birth to a little girl, Marie Elizabeth Lupin. She was born April twentieth, weighed seven pounds, eight ounces and was twenty-one inches long.

At first, John had not been so sure he liked this little red-haired invader. She got a lot of attention, and made a lot of noise. Having the intelligence and curiosity of both parents, he was puzzled by the baby. Holly and Remus found ways to allow him to interact with his little sister. They also did their best to assure him that he was still as important and loved as he'd always been.

As they grew, the children became close friends. At times, of course, they couldn't stand each other. But overall their relationship was a close, caring one.

The children's early years had been full of the usual milestones, and their parents had delighted in watching them grow. Both children were completely normal, with no trace at all of the lycanthropy that plagued their father. They both showed signs of magical abilities early, at around age six. Holly had suspected this would happen, therefore she taught them at home. She made sure they got all the basic skills they would need for their education at Hogwarts. Though she didn't send them to muggle school, she made did teach them about muggles.

Time had revealed that the speculations Remus and Holly had made about John before his birth were true. The older he got, the more he looked like his father, except he did have his mother's smile. He was a bright, curious little boy, with a mischievous streak; he was always getting into something. He was also a kind, caring child and a natural athlete. He'd started riding a toy broom when he was eighteen months old, and by age five had a real one. It had come as no real surprise that this talent, along with his long, lean frame, had landed him the seeker's position on Gryffindor's quidditch team in his second year at Hogwarts.

Marie, however, was a mirror image of her mother, but had her father's bright blue eyes. She was the quiet one of the pair. She was intelligent and curious, but shy and reserved. She had her mother's love of the outdoors and her creativity. She would spend hours in a tree, watching things around her, or she'd take pencils and paper into the garden to draw flowers.

Both children enjoyed spending time with Sirius, who made frequent visits. It was not unusual to see him three or four times a week. He enjoyed spending time with the children, telling them stories of their father's teen years, teaching them things, especially pranks. He filled the role as a really close uncle to them, and spoiled them almost as if they were his own.

The Weasley family had assumed a unique role, becoming an extended family to the Lupins. Molly and Arthur treated the children as well as they did their own grandchildren; the rest of the family looked at them as an extra nephew and niece. The Lupins visited them often, and attended most family gatherings, especially at the holidays.

Alyssa and Steve welcomed their nephew and niece warmly, and the children enjoyed their time with them. On a couple of occasions, they invited the Lupins to spend a school break with them in Australia. They'd accepted, and the kids had really enjoyed the time at the beach.

Today, the four of them, along with Sirius, were in Diagon Alley. School was to start in a few days, and both children needed supplies for the new term.

Remus and Sirius went with John to look at broomsticks, and to pick up a few little extra items he wanted for school this year. He would be starting his fifth year at Hogwarts, so for him, shopping for supplies wasn't as interesting as it was for Marie. He'd been made Quidditch captain this year, so his parents had promised him a new broom. When they went inside the shop, his eyes darted from one to another, finally landing on the one he'd read about, the Firebolt 4. When he spotted it, he said " Dad, there it is, the silver one."

"The Firebolt 4?"

"Yes, sir. That's the one I want, if we can get it."

Remus walked over to the display and examined the broom. Sirius joined him, and after a moment, quietly whistled.

"This is a fine broom, Remus. This is better than the one I bought Harry a few years ago. He'll enjoy this one."

"I thought it seemed nice, and well made. I'm going to see about the price. If I can, I'll get it for him."

Remus went up to the counter and talked to the clerk about the broom. The price was within the amount he'd set aside for this purchase, so he told the man he'd take it. The two of them walked back to the window where it was on display. As the shopkeeper took it down, John's expression questioned his father.

"Yes, son it's yours." Remus told him.

John smiled and hugged his father in excitement. A wave of happiness washed over Remus as his son hugged him. He was very pleased to be able to provide for his family. For a long time, he'd have never thought it possible. But that part of his life seemed a lifetime ago on days like this.

For the rest of the day, John carried his new broom around as carefully as if it were alive. It was clearly his favorite possession.

While the guys had been shopping for brooms, Holly had taken Marie to be fitted for her uniforms. Marie was starting her first year at Hogwarts, so she needed everything. Even though she knew a lot about it after listening to so many people talk, there was still something new and wonderful about going there. She'd also been to Diagon Alley before, but today the things she would be choosing were for herself, to use while she learned magic. Once they were finished at the clothing shop, they went to the wand shop. It was in the building Ollivander's had used, but it was now called The Wand Emporium. They'd heard the man running it had been taught by Mr. Ollivander, but didn't know for sure. His work seemed good; John's wand had come from there, as had Sirius' and both worked fine.

A tall, think wizard who looked about Holly's age smiled at Marie .

"You must be getting ready for Hogwarts."

"Yes sir. I need a wand."

"You've come to the right place. I'm sure we have a perfect fit for you here somewhere."

He then took a bunch of measurements and asked Marie a lot of questions. After he was finished, he disappeared into a back room. A few minutes later, he came back with a half dozen wands for her to try.

She tried each of the first four with bad results. She'd managed to make a real mess of the shop, and was more than a little embarrassed. She looked up at her mom, her face bright red. Holly gave her shoulder a squeezed. "This happens in here all the time, doesn't it, sir?"

He smiled at Marie "Yes it does. In fact, this is about the sixth time today it's happened. Luckily, I'll have it all cleaned up in about the same amount of time it took to make the mess. So, cheer up, we still need to find that special one for you."

Marie managed a smile and said "Okay".

So she picked up the fifth wand in the group. This time when she waved it, nothing exploded or broke, it simply shot sparks out the end.

"Looks like we have a winner. Cherry, twelve inches, unicorn hair. A good wand for transfiguration, though like any wand, it will perform anything well for its master."

Marie smiled brightly "I'm looking forward to really using it."

Holly paid for the wand, which was boxed nicely, and the pair left the store.

Next, they went to the Magical Menagerie. Hogwarts had begun allowing the students to have cats as pets, and Marie wanted one. Along the first row of cages, Marie spotted a small white kitten. She walked up to the cage, and the kitten came right to the door, as if trying to get to her. It looked at her pleadingly, and Holly could tell by the expression on her daughter's face that this was the one. Holly got her to look around more, just to be sure, but she went right back to it. So, they got the kitten, which they were told was female, about three months old, and part Kneazle. They also bought a basket, food, and some other necessary items.

After they finished there, it was time to meet up with the guys. Not only had they picked up John's broom, but the potions ingredients each kid needed, along with Marie's cauldron and scales. All that remained on their lists were their textbooks. Sirius and John stayed outside of the shop with the cat while Holly, Remus and Marie went in the bookstore to make those purchases. A little while later, they came out, arms full of books and ready to leave.

They apparated back home, then got busy separating and checking everything. About an hour later, they realized they had everything on both lists, so the two packed their trunks. Then John went outside to try out his new broom. Marie spent most of the evening curled up on her bed with Fluffy, reading over her new textbooks.

On the morning of August thirty-first, the Lupin family, like so many other wizard families, went to King's Cross station. They went through the wall that served as a gateway to Platform 9 3/4, and in front of them was the large scarlet steam engine of the Hogwarts Express.

Holly stood there for a moment, observing her family. Remus had the luggage trolley, with John's well-worn brown trunk, and Marie's new pink one. Perched carefully atop the trunks were an owl cage housing a brown barn owl and a basket holding a white kitten. From time to time, a white paw would reach out and swipe at the air- the cat could obviously hear and smell the owl. Luckily, the basket was turned so that he couldn't reach the owl.

Off to her right, about fifty feet away, was John, tall, lanky and sandy-haired. He'd caught up to a couple of his friends and was now talking animatedly to them.

Standing close by was Marie. Small and slender, with a long red braid, she reminded Holly so much of herself at that age. She looked around, obviously nervous about the day. Holly took her hand, gave it a slight squeeze, and said.

"It's okay, darling. You'll have fun today. I'm sure you'll enjoy the trip, and I bet you'll meet someone interesting."

"I hope so. Are you really sure they won't pick on me for being a werewolf's kid?"

Holly thought carefully about this before she answered. Marie had been nervous about this all summer. Holly had tried to assure her that it would be okay, but she knew there was a small chance she would encounter some kids who would tease her about her father.

"I don't think they will. John has never run into anyone who did. Most people now know and respect your father because he's shown everyone what a good person he is. If anyone gives you trouble, tell your head of house, us or the Headmaster."

"Okay. You and dad won't be upset if I'm not in Gryffindor, will you?"

"Of course not. The sorting is just a best guess of where you belong. It tells you what talents it believes you have. But it also takes your choice into consideration. I've heard a couple of people who whispered to the hat that they'd rather be in a particular house and it put them there. I've also seen a number of students who got sorted into one house and later seemed like they belonged elsewhere, but they were good students, had made friends where they were and were happy."

"If I don't like the house I'm sorted into after a while, can I change?"

"I'm not sure, but probably. For now, stop worrying, it will be okay. Why don't you see if you can find James Potter and Rose Weasley. They're starting this year too."

At that suggestion, Marie's face brightened. It hadn't occurred to her they would be here as well.

"I think I will."

She hugged her mom, and was off at a quick walk. Holly saw her stop about thirty feet away from her in the opposite direction from where John and his friends still stood. She looked closely and recognized the group she'd found as her friends.

Just then, Remus walked up.

"Everything is on the train. They should be ready to leave in a few minutes."

"Good. Marie found James and Rose. That should help her nerves."

"She still worried about being teased about me?"

"Yes, but I told her I didn't think it was very likely. I also told her what to do if it did happen."

"Good. She'll be okay. Kids now are much more tolerant than they were even a few years ago."

"I know."

He slipped his arm around her waist, and hugged her.

"So is our oldest schoolgirl ready to go back?"

"Absolutely. After fifteen years away, I'm looking forward to it. I enjoyed those first three years so much, I'm excited about more. But I have to admit it feels a little strange to be 'starting over' at fifty."

"Don't look at it as starting over; think of it as returning after a long vacation. But as for your age, we both know fifty is not old for a witch or wizard. I'm glad to know you're looking forward to it, though."

"I am. And I'm glad we decided to stay in the castle, I think it will be great for all four of us to be together."

Just then, the train gave a whistle that was the warning it was nearly time to leave. Both kids knew the reason for the whistle. Holly looked around and saw them both making their way toward their parents. Even though they would see them again in a few hours, both kids came up to them and said their goodbyes before boarding the train.

Holly and Remus stood there, hand in hand, and watched the train leave the station. As it pulled out of sight, Holly found herself thinking, as she had on many happy occasions, that all was right with their little part of the world.


End file.
